


Never

by Whisper9



Series: Five Kingdoms AU [3]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Children, Don't read this just for the hot scenes!, F/F, F/M, Google translate used, Humor, Mantis doesn't love, Orchid, Parenthood, Please Don't Hate Me, Problably some hot scenes, Romance that not seems romance, Tsunderes, Ze'mer appears just in flashbacks, it's official there is sex, lavender - Freeform, lily - Freeform, many Oc vessels
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2020-09-22 12:35:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 108,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20320459
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whisper9/pseuds/Whisper9
Summary: The mantis are strong, cold, ruthless and above all, they never fall in love. This is how a mantis should be, but above all. Only perdition awaits those who dare to break the rules and Orchid knows it very well. So she hates that knight with penetrating gaze and silent presence. She will never forgive him for stealing a victory and her heart.





	1. Orchid

**Author's Note:**

> The truth is I am a little nervous about this, I feel it is something too strange, but I already wrote it and translated it so ... Here it is.
> 
> This story is linked to Hallownest Tales, although the relation is still far away and will not be noticeable until the other fic almost reaches its end. But, the rules applied to that world also apply to this story.
> 
> In this AU, although the vessels do not have gender, they usually feel identified with one gender or another (There are some who never manage to decide whether they want to be male or female). The Knight feels identified with the male gender and the other insects also identify him as a male because of his body language.

Orchid, Lily and Lavender, the three mantis sisters, the most powerful warriors of the whole tribe, the absolute example of everything a mantis should be: Powerful, cold and ruthless. It was not surprising that they were the leaders of the tribe, although what did attract attention was that they had lasted so long in power with so many challenges they had received.

Lonely males and females, couples, and brothers, from time to time presented themselves to challenge the Lords and claim the thrones, but on each occasion they had been defeated by the overwhelming power of the sisters, they had no comparison.

During all their years they had only lost once, nothing less than against a child outside the tribe. That young warrior of short stature but great value earned their respect and recognition, not only from them, but from the whole tribe. Since then, each mantis had to bow down before him every time he was in front and for a long time, that was something usual. The little silent warrior every so often visited them, he said nothing, just gave them a penetrating look, as if something wanted to communicate with those deep black eyes.

Orchid, the youngest of the mantis was always intrigued by those eyes. It looked like an empty look, but she could see inside it a deep determination, a fire that seemed to burn her soul, but at the same time, she felt something dark, scary, abnormal, powerful and suffocating. She shuddered every time she saw him. He was a monster, one of small size and harmless look, but he wasn't going to cheat on her. But she couldn't do anything, he was more powerful, she just could to look down and make a reverence. Quite grateful she must be that the monster was peaceful and had forgiven their lives.

But the memory of the silent monster was slowly buried in the back of her mind. She never talked to her sisters about him and his sudden disappearance contributed to this. She focused on her present, her rivals and her search for a worthy companion.

The mantis did not have what was called marriage, nor did they develop many emotional ties, it was something seen as a feature of weakness, there was no love between them. They used to choose a couple almost exclusively to procreate and they were usually guided by power and strength That it showed. Orchid was still young, but she already watched with dissimulation possible candidates. However, being one of the most powerful members of the tribe, finding a male to match her in strength would be complicated.

But a couple was not something she looked forward to or eagerly, she just wanted to make sure she had strong descendants and perhaps a powerful opponent to fight with regularly. But as much as she was looking for, no male was at her height.

But fate is capricious and unpredictable, it twists in strange ways surprising with its unexpected turns.

One day at any time, that mysterious insect that had challenged them to duel a couple of years ago made their way into the mantis village. After so much absence, it was a surprise to see him again. Many did not recognize him, he had changed, he looked different, but something in his aura and his presence removed old memories betraying his identity.

For each place that he walked a mantis bowed before him, showing their respect.The mysterious insect advanced between the galleries and recesses of the place without stopping to look at the curious mantis that watched him from nearby. Something urged him to move quickly through the village and reach Deepnest. What would it be? They would never know, if there was something that had remained the same in this being, it was their eternal silence.

However, he stop to greet the Mantis Lord. The throne room was in the deepest area of the village, bordering on the entrance to that dark area, so seeing the lords was mandatory. And as this warrior's education forced him to show respect to the leaders, as soon as he was in front of the ladies he bowed to them.

For the Lords it was a surprise, at first they thought it was an intruder, or a new challenger who would give them a good battle. But when the bug raised his head and looked at them they recognized him.

The little silent warrior had grown a lot, now he was a handsome insect, thin-bodied but strong-looking, he had a magnificent antler, and an air of royalty enhanced by the beautiful cloak he wore. The little child had grown to become a splendid adult. 

Orchid did not like to be reunited with that spot of his past. Maybe her sisters had accepted that defeat with pleasure and philosophy, but she wasn't, she was proud and arrogant, she always hated to think she ever lost. How much he did not want to be able to challenge this insolent warrior to put him in his place and clear her history of battles. But instead she had to bow down to him. She felt very upset.

But then she caught his gaze, those empty eyes that so impressed her had changed. It was hard to describe it but it seemed full, warm but not suffocating. The fire that used to inhabit it now seemed like a calm lake in which she wish she could submerge.

The young mantis' heart began to shake as a strange and unknown sensation swept through her, heat invaded her face, she felt tickle in her abdomen and her legs trembled slightly.

But that was an instant, soon the warrior without saying a word, moved away from the throne room into the darkness of Deepnest.

Orchid looked at him until his silhouette was lost, swallowed by the blackness of that horrible cave. Then a melancholy settled in her heart along with a longing to see him again.

Damn, damn, a thousand times damn silent warrior. Orchid would never forgive him, not only had he taken a victory, now he was also provoked by that mental illness that had meant the destruction of so many mantis, including her niece. But she was strong, she would not succumb to it, she would soon forget him, resume her routine, remain many years occupying the throne of the mantis and find a male who give her powerful descendants. 

Yes, that would be her future, she had decided it. And she would keep this as a dark secret at the bottom of her heart. She would never admit that she was ever in love.


	2. The Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More details about this AU.
> 
> The knight in this story is named Hollow (I know there is a common consensus that he is called Ghost, but I started inventing this universe before entering the fandom and by that time I call him Hollow, now it's too late to change that. I should have called him Walter)
> 
> The Hollow knight is called Big (I have the creativity of a rock for the names)
> 
> There are Five kingdoms:
> 
> Hallownest Hearth (This include City of Tears, cristal Peak, resting lands, ancient basin and forgotten crossroads) ruled by Big.  
The Hive ruled by Vespa's daughter  
Deepnest ruled by Hornet  
Green lands (This include Queen's gardens, Green Path and Fog Canyon) Ruled by Clare, White Lady's daughter (more details in part one)  
Fungal Wastes ruled by Mantis Lords.  
Nobody cares Dirtmouth

The memory of the mysterious silent warrior remained for several days hovering around Orchid's head, causing all kinds of feelings and desires that a mantis -especially a leader- should not feel. An insane curiosity to know more about that individual and the desire to leave Fungal Wastes and look for him.

These thoughts did nothing but torment the poor mantis. Relations with insects outside the tribe were strictly forbidden, the mantis hated crossbreed insects and anything that led to one's birth was avoided at all costs. Based on this, the prohibition of mating with foreign bugs was created, a rule that applied to everyone regardless of the nature of the relationship. For something although her late niece had been interested in a female bug and obviously among them they would not be able to have eggs, either she was not able to live her romance and faced the drastic law of mantis.

Only impartiality was sought. It would be unfair for homosexual relations tobe allowed, and heterosexual relations no. On the other hand, the mantis also did not want their culture based on strength and power to be tainted by other people's thoughts. That's why Orchid felt so dirty thinking about the silent warrior in that special way, for the mantis mentality this was something horrifying.

In her own way she tried to calm down, convincing herself that this was only a passing thing, a mere sexual impulse caused perhaps by the concern she had lately of finding a male that would give her strong descendants. The strongest male of the tribe had been already claimed by Lavender, her older sister. Although that was not too much trouble, because between the mantis there was neither marriage nor fidelity, what did exist was honor and respect. If She wanted to get the paternity of that individual, she could ask her sister for permission. That was not frowned upon and was a common practice, however the idea of resorting to it embarrassed her greatly.

On the other hand, her sister's partner would be very powerful, but the poor bug was uglier than the lie. She knew that things like physical appearance shouldn't be important, but she wanted a handsome insect, at least for her first time. Would she be being too capricious?

Despite all her doubts, questions and all the shameful fantasies that the young warrior caused her, Orchid would have been able to forget him. The distance and time would have killed that small little flame of passion that opened its way in her chest, without an effective bond or contact beyond a fleeting glance in the distance, everything was destined to end in nothing.

The silent warrior almost never passed through the Mantis village, he used other routes to reach Deepnest and although he sometimes wandered through Fungal Wastes, it had not happened that they had met.

Yes, that whole affair of her crush could have become nothing more than a distant dream, but things didn't turn out that way.

One day The Mantis Lords received the great surprise that the very queen of Deepnest requested an audience with them. In the five years that she had been ruling, they had never had the opportunity to see her, they had heard of her, they talked about her great strength, her severe character, her fair acting and the respect that her people professed and the insects of other tribes, so they were so curious about her.

Probably because of the enmity that mantis had traditionally had with spiders, neither party had made the slightest effort to contact the other, but Queen Hornet seemed determined to establish friendly relations with all the kingdoms, including the tribe of mantis.

However, despite everything they had heard from the queen, she herself was extremely disappointing. Hornet was all that a mantis despised. She was a crossbreed, half spider, half worm. Worm! Sure, she was the daughter of the legendary Pale King, but that wasn't enough to dull her dirty blood, besides the mantis had never revered that monarch. She was also very small. How could a creature of her size impose respect? Is it that the inhabitants of Deepnest were crazy?

Herrah was huge, but her daughter had not inherited her genes, she was small like her father and she didn't seem to have as much magical power as he did, what a pathetic queen.  
Still, that was not what bothered them most about Hornet, after all, their mixed blood was not her fault. Which really seemed unacceptable, was that she had chosen a pill bug as a mate.

An insect so small, so pathetic, so weak, paired with the spider queen. What was in the head of this spider when she decided to take such a companion? But how despicable. However, what Orchid refused to confess to herself, was the envy that caused her to see Hornet had the freedom to pair with whoever she wanted, even if he did not belong to her species.

Despite the low approval they felt towards the queen, the Lords decided to give her the opportunity to hold a meeting with her.

That was how one day at dawn, the three mantis received the envoys of deep nest: The spider queen, her consort, some arachnid servants and the mysterious silent knight.

For the three lords it was a surprise to discover that her friend was on behalf of Deepnest. They had always thought that he was a wandering insect that roamed the kingdom in search of powerful opponents with whom to measure themselves. In part this had made him earn their respect, he was all that they valued, cold, powerful and ambitious. But the reality was that They did not know him as well as they believed.

During that meeting Orchid learned several things about the mysterious warrior, such as the name of this individual was Hollow, and he was nothing less than the queen's brother, at least from the father side, that fact partly explained why they saw him from Deepnest's side.  
Although the mantis wondered if Hollow would not feel ashamed of having such a pathetic sister. As his attitude was cold, distant and silent it was impossible to know his position regarding the situation.

In addition to the warrior's family details, Orchid also learned of other things of less relevance (but that she still died to know). He liked to play with water, he was actually a very quiet person, who preferred food salty and was practically raised by Hornet. The problem is that she was so aware of Hollow that she wasn't paying too much attention to the meeting.

"Orchid wake up!" said Lily, gently shaking her sister.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I was somewhat distracted"

"Is something wrong with you? Today you act something strange"

"It's nothing, don't worry"

The mantis took a deep breath trying to calm down, although it was complicated with that sensual insect in front. She had never felt so attracted to someone and this was driving her crazy. It was very difficult to prevent her mind from wandering into ardent sexual fantasies with that bug. She forced herself to ignore the silent warrior and look at his pathetic sister. As soon as she laid her eyes on her, she felt disgusted. It was perfect, if she concentrated on that negative emotion she could stay focused on the meeting.

"Well, as I was saying, I know that our tribes have always been in constant conflict" Hornet said, picking up the word. "But I strongly believe that we can reach an agreement that can bring peace and a healthy coexistence between us."

"That is an elegant way to disguise an invasion of our lands" said Lavender, the older sister.

"And that is something that of course we won't allow" added Lily.

"Fungal Wastes belongs to the mantis and nobody will take away what is ours" Orchid finished.

"Of course, no one is going to take away your land," Hornet tried to explain. "The absolute sovereignty of this territory will continue to belong to the mantis. The leaders of the other kingdoms have agreed on this, no one seeks conflict, the only thing that we wish is to have the possibility of traveling through the place safely without being attacked by any of your warriors"

"Invasion! It are our lands! Nobody outside the tribe can set foot in them" Lavender shouted.

"It is not an invasion" The crossbreed tried to keep calm even though she was beginning to get impatient "We want to make that clear. We are looking for an agreement, some way to get your permission to wander through Fungas wastes without being attacked"

"The agreements are for weak bugs that are not able to prove their worth in combat" Lily declared sharply.

"The agreements are to avoid unnecessary deaths" The Queen tried to reason "In addition it seems unnecessary to start a war just for mushrooms"

"Mushrooms?"

"The reason we are interested in the permission to walk freely in Fungal Wastes is because of the fungi that grows there. Many of them are used to cook all kinds of very tasty dishes, but it are very expensive due to the danger that their obtaining represents"

"They want to take our resources!" Screamed Orchid angry.

"We would be willing to pay for them and even respect the restrictions you put on us. We just have to reach an agreement"

"There is no agreement! Fungal Wastes belong to the mantis and there is no discussion"

Hornet was already despairing, her strong and impulsive personality was tempting her to start a fight at that moment, but that was not a good idea. She was not in the best conditions to fight, for something she had asked her brother to support her in case things got violent. She hated the idea of having to be protected. She should have listened to Quirrel and waited at least a week before holding that meeting.

"Nobody doubts your sovereignty over that area" Quirrel intervened, trying to calm the mood, but his intervention was not well received by the mantis.

"Silence pill bug! You have no right to participate in this matter!" Lavender said with authority, and this was enough to blow up Hornet.

"How dare you talk to my husband like that!" The crossbreed shouted indignantly.

"It is an inferior creature" said Lily with contempt. "A weak being that does not deserve consideration. I really don't know how you could choose this being as a husband. This is disgusting."

This was already an offense too big to be tolerated. All spiders were put on guard ready to join the fight that was about to break out. However, it was a fact that they had a disadvantage, they were in enemy territory, they were a minority and their queen due to certain circumstances was not in the best conditions to fight. Hornet of course was aware of this, so she was forced to make a quick decision.

"I challenge you to a duel for honor" she said, taking out her needle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was not in my plans to upload another chapter, at least not so soon, but the idea received so much support that I wrote a second chapter.  
This would really be a continuation that happens a few years after Hallownest Tales, so I decided to join both works in a series, the bad thing is that this would be part 3, which I started writing before part 2. I don't know if in the future I can modify the order of the parts (I'm a disaster). Anyway, both works can be read independently (I think), you just have to assume certain things, as Quirrel and Hornet are married for example, although the reasons that led them to this are not explained in this part.


	3. Responsabilities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be a sweet love story... But I don't know how to write those things and I'm going to the other way XD.

"I demand a duel for honor" said the crossbreed authoritatively.

"What!?" Shouted Quirrel.

"¡¡¡¡" Hollow also seemed upset.

The two took the queen and separated her a moment from the meeting, to the dissatisfaction of the mantis, who at each moment felt more contempt for this queen who allowed herself to be handled so easily. They were not even close to imagining the delicate condition she was in.

"Hornet you can't do that!" The pill bug whispered altered. "Remember what the midwife said"

"I know what she said, I was there."

".........!" Hollow expressed his point of view with that silent communication that only Hornet, his siblings and partially Quirrel could understand.

"I feel good, I can do it."

"But you won't be able to fight with your maximum potential. They will beat you up"

"I'll be fine"

".........!"

"What do you suggest we do genius?"

"Perhaps there is some way to fix this peacefully?"

"Quirrel," she sighed tired. "Not even you think that is possible"

"But I don't want something bad to happen to you."

"And I don't want anything bad to happen to you, nor to any of the members of my people. But we are in numerical and terrain disadvantage, if we all get into a fight we will most likely lose, and more than one would end up dying. On the other hand, duels for honor are rarely to death, the loser must simply recognize that the winner is right"

"......... "Hollow looked upset.

"Under normal circumstances my defeat would question my leadership, but there is no other spider in the kingdom that can dispute my throne, so there should be no problems."

"But your people could lose confidence in you and that would make your reign difficult." Quirrel looked extremely worried.

"Well, I'll make them trust me again. I don't care, my priority is to protect my people. This was the best solution that occurred to me, now if any of you have a better suggestion, I am all ears" They both looked at each other without saying a word, none knew what else to do. "I imagined that. We have no other option. Anyway, Quirrel" She stared at the pill bug that looked at her scared. "If I lose, I want you to escape as fast as you can. My defeat means that they would be right and in their eyes you would have the status of inferior creature. If they decide to kill you I won't be able to do anything, or even complain about it"

"But...."

"Stay close to the exit." That were the last instructions of the crossbreed before heading to the Lord Mantis.

She stood in front of the ladies and looked at them proudly, just as a queen should be. Even when they were on the heights of their thrones and their sizes were much higher than hers, Hornet was not intimidated, at least this made the mantis devote her a minimum of respect.

"Did they give you permission to fight?" Lily tried to provoke the queen.

"A queen does not need to ask for authorization to defend her honor." The spider took out her needle getting ready for combat.

"We were just discussing the best battle strategy." Quirrel appeared next to Hornet with his sting prepared for combat.

"Quirrel..." Hornet tried to hide the best possible her surprise. And before her confusion made her commit any indiscretion, the pill bug resumed the word.

"Being the main one affected by your offense, I also have to participate in this fight along with my queen"

"We don't object to your participation" Lavender said solemnly. "But we doubt your ability to play it. We have never heard of a warrior pill bug"

"It wasn't just because of my pretty face that Hornet chose me as her mate" He answered confidently.T

hat answer seemed to satisfy the mantis, because they jumped off their thrones ready to fight ... At least two of them.

"Orchid!" The older sister shouted. "What the hell are you doing?"

The younger sister suddenly woke up from her reveries and looked down in shame with her red face. Again she had let her mind pay more attention to Hollow than to the meeting. Why was it so difficult to resist the charms of that bug? Just looking at him was already a delight, but she didn't have time for that. They required her presence.

The truth she was not very aware of the situation, but seeing her sisters on the mainland with their weapons was enough to know what she had to do. She joined them and waited to see what happened.

"Choose your judge spider" Lavender as always took the lead in regards to official things.

Hornet turned her gaze to the servant spiders she had brought with her, but she was interrupted by Hollow's signs trying to get her attention.

"...!"

"No Hollow, you don't serve to be a judge"

The mantis blinked in surprise, the queen could understand the silent knight. They always thought that he could not speak, it never occurred to them that he simply had another form of communication. Although it was difficult to deduce it. In all their previous encounters he had never done anything but look at them penetratingly. Did that mean anything in particular? Anyway they had to admit that with his sister nearby, Hollow seemed much more communicative. Would he be a shy guy?

Orchid looked at the crossbreed with envy. She wish she could understand the knight too. With a more fluid dialogue, maybe she could convince him to go with her to some nice corner of Fungal Wastes and do ... Many things they was not supposed to do...

The mantis hit her face trying to remove those shameful thoughts, that behavior of course caught her sisters' attention.

"Today you are very strange Orchid" Lily looked at her with concern.

"I'm fine, don't worry"

"Focus on the battle, don't make us look ashamed" If she hadn't known her for a lifetime, Orchid would have been angry. But she already knew that her sister had that acid and impertinent personality, there was no point in arguing with her.

"I designate Ania as my judge" Hornet announced.

The mentioned spider stepped forward and made a respectful bow.

"It will be an honor" she said in a squeaky voice.

Lavender then looked around at the members of her tribe present, trying to decide who was the fittest. Until she finally decided on one that stood out for being extremely observant.

"Chris, I designate you as our judge."

"I am honored by your choice" the insect replied also with a bow.

Both teams were placed on different sides of the battle arena, and the judges aside to observe the combat. According to the law that governed these duels, they should have a judge of each team to make everything more transparent. Once everything was ready, both bugs gave authorization to start the fight.

The mantis were the first to launch into combat, taking the unsuspecting enemy was part of their strategy, along with a swift and ruthless offensive.

In a blink the deadly trio vanished in front of them and a few seconds later, one of the Lords appeared behind them to attack them with her boomerang blade. Quirrel dodged with a speed that rivaled that of the mantis, while Hornet chose to jump. However, instead of performing an elegant and acrobatic jump, he felt awkward and heavy, as if the strength of her legs were not enough to support her.

Ania, the judge of Deepnest could not help but let out a little cry of anguish, which did not go unnoticed by someone as observant as Chris. This of course caught his attention. He would have expected a growl of rage, or an expletive, but not that look of fear and concern. Was the queen sick?

His suspicions seemed increasingly true, with each passing minute it was more noticeable that the queen was not well. He couldn't know what kind of problem she presented, but something had to do with her belly. He could tell it by the way she shrink herself on it every time she received an impact or made an abrupt movement.

Luckily for Hornet, her husband was fighting like never before and trying his best to protect her, which if Chris could not see it with his own eyes, he would believe it impossible. A pill bug was blocking the mantis's attacks and fighting like a warrior. It didn't seem like he had the ability to defeat the lords, but it wasn't going to be easy to make him fall either. Meanwhile, the poor queen was limited to enduring as she could and to try to make some attacks at a distance with her needle, but the apparent suffering she endured made it difficult to hit a blow.

The viewers of Deepnest were increasingly worried, especially Hollow who, under his stoic attitude, hid a growing fear for the health of his sister. With every blow that the crossbreed received, he could not help but want to scream. Of course that was beyond his means, with the years of practice he had been able to learn to emit sounds, but they did not go beyond simple whispers, because it was painful to emit, better not to think about screaming.

Hornet was at the center of the battlefield, Quirrel was a little away from her fighting hand in hand against Lily, the other two mantis were not in sight. It was an extremely complex situation for her, because Hornet's senses and perception were cloudy because of the pain she felt. It was hard for her to repel or dodge the two mantises that seemed to have focused on her when she saw her as the weakest.

Hornet looked everywhere trying to predict or perceive an attack before it reached her, even with her daze she did her best to battle decently, but this seemed to be beyond her means. Suddenly she caught a glimpse of something from the corner of her eye and moving as fast as she could, she turned just in time to block an Orchid's attack, but the lord instead of retreating quickly as she had done so far, she kept in place by pressing her. The mantis had already noticed that the queen was at her limit and chose to finish her once and for all.

Orchid remained on the offensive while Hornet resisted as she could, using all her willpower to stand up, even when her legs were shaking. But if she barely endured an opponent, she couldn't with two. Lavender appeared behind the backs of the fighters, and got ready to throw a boomerang blade. Hollow from his place could not take it anymore and lost his composure externalizing all his anguish.

"Hornet!" Cof ... Cof ... "The cough stifled his scream.

That soft, whispering voice caught Orchid's attention. She couldn't help looking at her silent warrior. Had she heard him speak? Was that melodious voice his? She noticed how Hollow coughed annoyed as he put his hand around his neck as if that way he could relieve the burning he felt. Poor, apparently he could speak, but it caused him tremendous suffering to do so. How much she would not like to alleviate him, surely a bit of the nectar from the Singing Flower could help him and she would gladly give him a little drink... Using her mouth...

Orchid had to hit herself mentally. She was doing it again, she had lost herself in her reveries, if she did not concentrate, her opponent could take the advantage.

And that happened.

Hornet taking advantage of the distraction of the mantis, climbed on top of her and tied her with her thread, then with a subtle movement made her fall. Lavender was forced to cancel her boomerang blade when she saw this and narrowed her eyes in rage. But what a stupid oversight!

Hornet chose not to wait for anything else and began beating her enemy with all her might, but each blow seemed to hurt her as much as the mantis. She was already running out of breath because of the effort and her attacks were losing power, however she noticed that she had already made her opponent lose consciousness. Orchid would not rise again, she was defeated, one of the mantis had fallen. Now would they have more advantage? She was wrong, because a small uproar made her turn her eyes and notice that Quirrel and Lily had fallen, both of them no longer had the strength to continue. She and Lavender were the only ones left standing, but given her deplorable state, it was obvious that Hornet could not win.

"Please... Please..." Ania whined from her place, looking at Chris pleadingly.

The mantis maintained a serious attitude while pondering the situation. Hornet had managed to endure until the end even given her precarious circumstances, the pill bug had shown that he was more than he appeared in that fight, and there was no honor or joy in the defeat of a weakened enemy. Considering the circumstances, he made a decision.

"Stop the fight!" The mantis shouted, the spider next to him sighed in relief.

Both warriors looked at the judges waiting for an explanation.

"The reason for this fight was to defend the honor of the pill bug present here, accused of being weak and insignificant.

"But the same pill bug through his combat performance was able to prove himself," Ania continued, understanding the logic of his argument.

"Taking these facts into account, we see no need to prolong this fight and we all agree to recognize that Quirrel is worthy of being considered as an equal before us.

Lavender looked around. She noticed Lily unconscious on the floor next to the insect that was in the same conditions. Not really many of his own tribe would be able to defeat her sister, she should give him credit for that.

"I accept the verdict" she said solemnly.

"I-I-approve the deci-sion" Hornet replied in a trembling voice.

Once the result was decided, the members of both tribes went to pick up their fallen warriors. Hornet stood with her proud attitude, even when her legs were shaking, she was only allowed to be helped to walk by a male spider on which she leaned in a sneaky way.

There were no more exchanges of words or speeches, the mantis were not much talkative. Spiders were somewhat more communicative, but they also did not wear out in useless talk without any purpose. The last thing said was a message from Queen Hornet before leaving through the door that led to Deepnest.

"There was no agreement at this meeting, but it won't be the last thing you know about me"

It was not a threat, just a simple message that made it clear that she had not yet given up on a trade agreement.

When the door that connected to the territory of the mantis finally closed behind them, Hornet allowed herself to demonstrate the weakness she had been hiding during the entire fight, then she dropped to the ground overcome by pain where she later lost consciousness.

By the time the crossbreed opened her eyes again, she was enveloped by the pleasant heat of a liquid that surrounded her, the pain had subsided and a pair of arms held her by the waist. The latter made her panic, she didn't know who was the one who had her captive but she couldn't get caught, fortunately her paranoia was quickly dissipated by her husband's soft voice.

"Take it easy Hornet, it's me"

"Quirrel." An immediate relief swept through her and she stopped struggling.

He let out a sigh and let herself be embraced by the blue bug. Now everything was fine, she could relax and rest.

Already calmer she observed her surroundings, they were in a hot spring, probably the one that was in the way to Deepnest. She saw some of her servants enjoying the magic liquid, while others were watching nearby. Hollow was near the shore playing with Ania.

She shook her head in resignation, so many years had passed, he had grown so tall that he was now taller than her and he was still behaving like a child who liked to play with water. Of course, his childish behaviors were something he only showed in front of those with whom he felt confident, for the others, he was a silent, proud, serious insect and a great warrior. Who imagined that the captain of the royal guard of King Big would be so childish?

In Deepnest he was already like of the family and they were used to dealing with the crazy things that occurred to him every time he visited them, but sometimes he was tiring. Hornet had to deal with a lot of pressure lately for the responsibilities of her kingdom, sometimes she envied the worry-free life his brother had.

"Hornet?" Quirrel's voice pulled her out of her thoughts." How do you feel?"

"I'm fine, thanks, it doesn't hurt anymore. I think I can walk home"

"Personally, I think it would be better if you avoided that, let one of the larger males carry you"

"What? Of course not! I'm not going down to something like that, I must show strength.

Suddenly Hornet felt the arms that held her tighten her grip on her, then she heard the voice of the angry pill bug.

"Hornet... Don't you think it was enough to play the strong girl? You need to rest! That were the midwife's instructions after you laid your eggs"

"But I can't, I'm the queen, I have duties to fulfill."

"One week Hornet! It was only a week!" Finally Quirrel exploded "All you had to do was stay a week resting! You didn't even need to stay in bed! You just had to avoid fights, complicated hunts and long trips! And you couldn't stand three days!"

"I have many responsibilities to fulfill!" The conversation happened to be shouting.

"Your main responsibility now is to take care of your health!"

"It was a delicate situation and you know it! There was no other way out of that predicament!"

"We would have avoided all this if you had postponed the meeting a week as I told you!"

"In a week it will be more complicated and you know why!"

"Well, then the meeting was not held! It was not so urgent!"

"For me it was!"

The two were so focused on their quarrel that they forgot that there were other spiders present. They feeling somewhat uncomfortable began to withdraw silently to wait for them outside the hot springs, however the majority before leaving gave a look to Ania that clearly said "do something".

The spider sighed something annoyed. As Hornet's personal assistant, she always had to solve those kinds of problems, it was good that they almost never fought, but when they did they could be terrible. She was about to walk towards them when she noticed that Hollow was getting ahead. So without warning he took Hornet and mounted her on top of him, with his larger size he now had no trouble doing that.

"Release me Hollow! I already said that I don't want to be charged!

"............."

"I'm going to..." At that moment a slight dizziness forced Hornet to cling to his brother's back.

"You see it? I told you that you were not well" Her husband rebuked her, who hurried to walk with the brothers.

"But if a moment ago I felt good"

"Because you were in the hot springs, but now that you leave it your energy starts to falter. Please Hornet, for once in life, follow our advice"

The queen growled annoyed and did not give a word all the way home, partly because of her anger and partly because after a while she fell asleep, to the relief of others. She didn't know when they reached Distant Town, nor did she wake up when she was gently climbed to the highest house in the village, or when they laid her on her bed. She just began to react when the midwife began examining her. Although she took a small scare when she woke up and found the milipies on top of her, she quickly calmed down when she recognized her.

"Wow, it seems that someone has not followed my instructions" the creature said in her old voice. "This is definitely not right."

"What does that mean?" Hornet asked cautiously.

"Exactly what I said, this is not right. I told you that after laying eggs you would be somewhat delicate and would need to rest, you did the opposite. Not only did you avoid rest, but you also struggled to the extreme. A little more and your matrix would have broken"

"And that...."

"You would have lost the possibility of laying more eggs." A shiver ran down the queen's back at the thought. "You are young, you have a long life ahead, it would not be good if you lost something so valuable yet. Not all children reach adults and you know it, that's why it is always better to have abundant offspring to make sure."

"I understand ..." Hornet looked down and squeezed the sheets on her bed. "I will be more careful from now on"

"Oh, of course you will, I have instructed you not to get out of bed, this time you need strict rest"

"What!? I can't stay in bed all day! I have many things to do!"

"Several of them can be done from your Hornet bed." Quirrel approached the bed to try to reassure her.

"But there are some projects that I need to supervise"

"Delegate them. Ask for a report and then review it from here"

"But... But... But what happens if a problem arises?"

"All is well Hornet." Quirrel took one of her hands, trying with all his might to calm her. "Things have been going very well in the kingdom lately, we are in a time of peace and prosperity and that doesn't have to change soon, much less in a week. Everything will be fine, no problem will arise, you just rest, you deserve it after how hard you have worked"

"Okay, I guess you're right..."

But unexpectedly, a spider ran into the room, he looked very exhausted and made a bunch of nerves.

"Emergency my Queen! A giant centipede is wreaking havoc on..."

But the spider could not continue his speech because he was interrupted by the midwife who appeared before him staring at him.

"How sweet, you sure have come very quickly to inform the queen of the problems that afflict you" A chill ran down the spider's back, feeling that what was following was not something very positive. "Would you mind leaving the message to me?"

At that moment the midwife opened her mask revealing her hidden face, the messenger spider paled with fear and ran away being chased by the millipede.

"Wait," Hornet shouted. "Don't go, I want to know what..."

Hornet made the move to get out of bed but was immediately held back by Quirrel who threw himself on her, however the small body of the pill bug was not enough to retain her, especially considering that Hornet had always been physically stronger than him. Then Ania and Hollow who were also present in the room, threw themselves on the couple wanting to support the pill bug.

"But what do you do! Let me go!" Shouted the furious queen. "And I didn't expect this from you Ania! Traitor!"

"I'm sorry, my queen" the poor spider was sobbing, "but this is for your sake."

"....."

"They are right Hornet, listen to them."

"Quirrel, did you understand something Hollow said?"

"Not really, but if he is helping us, I assume he agrees with us."

Hornet snorted annoyed and continued to struggle a little more, but she gave up when she began to feel a slight pain in her belly again, she was definitely not in a position to fight. She calmed down a bit and only then they released her. Ania accommodated her affectionately in her bed and then left the room announcing that she would bring her the papers from her office that needed to be taken care of. On the other hand, Hollow also left the room with intentions of going to get a tea and maybe something to eat, so that Quirrel and Hornet were left alone in the room.

"Hey... You don't need to take care of me" Hornet looked quite discouraged. "Now I am a hindrance but that does not have to affect your work. You have to prepare the classes for your students and as I recall you were in the middle of an important investigation. You can leave me if you want"

In response Quirrel placed his hands on both sides of her face and kissed her. That was a sweet, deep and passionate kiss, full of affection,. It was his way of showing her unconditional support. Hornet's mind clouded and suddenly she couldn't think of anything else, drunk with pleasant sensations, she only managed to reciprocate the kiss and hug her husband.

Breaking the magic of that intimate contact was difficult, they both longed for that after all the stress experienced, but it was not the time for that. Quirrel finished the kiss abruptly, then, without removing his hands from his wife's face he looked into her eyes and spoke softly.

"Don't say again that you are a hindrance. That you need to rest for a week does not make you useless. Relax Hornet, and forget about the idea of getting out of here when I'm gone"

"What? How do you..."

"I know you Hornet. So be a good girl and stay in bed resting as the midwife said. If you do I'll prepare your favorite stew"

"But ... But ..." Hornet seemed to be fighting with herself, but after a few moments she leaned on her bed with an annoyed expression. "Why do you always bribe me with food?"

"Because it works"

"Touche"

"I'll be back in a little while" said the pill bug as he left the room. "Do you want some dessert after the stew?"

"Quirrel... You shouldn't spoil me so much." The crossbreed looked at him angrily. "I'm going to get fat!"

"And sure fat you will still be lovely"

"Quirrel!"

"Just kidding. Don't worry about it, Hornet. With how restless you are, even if you gain a little weight, you will lose it right away as soon as you can get back out of bed"

Hornet replied nothing more, so her husband finally left the room leaving her alone. Absolutely alone with her thoughts, and that was what she feared most.

It was true that she used to overdo her work and often rested so little. but she had never exaggerated as much as now. And that was because staying busy kept her from thinking about her worries.

The crossbreed rose from the bed and went to a hidden room behind a curtain. She supposed that they would not scold her for going to see her little ones, it was not something that required too much effort.

The room was completely covered by a tangle of threads so intricate that only a spider could enter, this was the reason why Quirrel had not been able to see the eggs she had laid, but that was the custom of spiders. She simply could not sleep peacefully if she didn't have her eggs tightly held in a nest of thread.

Using her four limbs, she moved through the threads until she reached the bottom of the room, where there was a silk cradle suspended in the air. Inside, wrapped in a soft white blanket were three gray eggs, the Hornet's offspring.

The future mother approached the nest where she proceeded to take one of the eggs to groom it. This was extremely important to prevent them from rotting and dying and should be done every day.

While Hornet was cleaning the little balls, she was assaulted again by those doubts that had been tormenting her since the day she was finally able to put the seeds of new lives. What would come of these?

As queen she had many obligations to her people, and one of them was to grant them an appropriate heir, and it was understood as appropriate, that they were something minimally similar to a spider. The people would not accept a pill bug like their queen, unfortunately as their husband and the children's father was a pill bug, the chances that their offspring were, was also high. And considering that she herself was a crossbreed half spider and half worm, the opportunity to give birth to a spider fell even further. Basically what would come out of the eggs would be a mystery. There was even the possibility of a creature incompatible with life.

But they had already warned her that if that spider did not come out of these eggs, she would have to copulate with some thoroughbred male to conceive one, and she definitely did not want that, she wanted all her children to be from Quirrel. In addition she was very bothered by the idea of having to be intimate with another. This was the concern that had bothered her the last three days and the worst thing was that it would be weeks before she regained her peace or regretted her destiny. She hated not being in control of what was going to happen.

She looked at the egg in her arms, she didn't care what came out of it, she was going to love them the same, but she couldn't help desperately wanting a spider. At that time she often thought about her own mother, it was also difficult for her to bring her into the world. As far as she knew, Herrah did not like the Pale King, and having to copulate with a male who she despised surely was horrible. Hornet could at least choose someone she liked. she sighed regretfully and hugged the egg in her arms.

"Please... Please... Only one. At least one of them must be a spider, is all I ask"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I fear that the passionate orchid's personality will end up taking this story to a hot scene. I will try to avoid that by all means, but I don't promise anything, with me you never know how things will end, even for me this is a mystery.


	4. Confrontation

Wherever Orchid went, whispers and hostile glances followed her. The discontent was tangible and the rejection indisputable, there was no longer respect for her in the tribe.

Given her pathetic performance during the duel against the Queen of the Deep Nest, Orchid was not surprised to be treated like this. If her leader had lost so shamefully for walking lost in reveries, she would react the same. However, although she justified her followers' behavior, she kept feeling annoyed at them.

Their disapproving looks irritated her. She was used to being admired and respected, she didn't tolerate their contempt. The worst part was that many nasty stories about her were spreading. There were no few who said that all she had achieved was thanks to her sisters, because as the three always fought together, they were responsible for supplying her weakness. How dare they! Apparently they did not remember that when the four (they had their brother in that time) challenged the previous leaders, later they fought among themselves to see who would be the undisputed leader. Their duel ended in a draw and therefore the four declared themselves Lords. Therefore, she was as strong as her sisters. They should not doubt her supremacy!

But she knew how things worked in the tribe, the leader was always under surveillance, always on trial to prove their power. In fact Orchid wondered when a challenger would appear to fight with her, she really wanted to kill someone and a good fight could do her good. Of course, she had full confidence in herself and doubted that someone would be able to defeat her. Perhaps Lavender's reproductive partner could pose some challenge, but she still felt superior.

However, she never expected that her sisters confront her.

"Orchid, along with Lily, we have been discussing it and we don't believe that you are in a position to continue exercising as Lord" the older sister said suddenly.

"What!? But why do you say that!?" The mantis showed a mixture of surprise and defiance in her eyes, even though she maintained her characteristic regal and elegant posture.

"Is's really necessary to ask?" Lily as always had that aggressive and unkind attitude.

"I know that during the fight against Queen Hornet I was not up to it. But I'm still strong! May any mantis of the tribe challenge me to a duel. They'll succumb to my power!"

"Orchid, we don't doubt your physical abilities" Lavender kept her tone serious and solemn. "What we question is your mental strength"

"Me-me, mental? There is nothing wrong in my mind!"

"Maybe not exactly in your mind, but in your..."

"Lily, don't be unrespectful!" Lavender rebuked her.

"Whatever." Lily resumed the word. "The thing is that during the fight, or rather during all that boring meeting, all you did was be aware of Hollow. And the looks you gave him were not simple curiosity"

"What do you mean sister?" Orchid narrowed her eyes revealing a silent threat.

"You like that bug! You want him! But relationships with other species of bugs are taboo and you know it. You are disgusting!"

This aggressive statement ignited the Orchid's fury, who threw herself against her sister with her spear ready to attack. Lily of course responded to her challenge in the same way and both mantis began an aggressive fight. However it is over as soon as it started, thanks to the timely intervention of Lavender, who was able to stop the sisters with a precise blockade.

"Enough!" The older sister shouted.

"But Lavender! Lily has offended me! I demand a duel!"

"You are not in a position to fight." Lavender spoke calmly. "But unlike Lily, I don't think you're so bad, it seems to me you're only confused"

"Confused?"

"Yes. The breeding season is near, and although it is not in your plans to leave offspring yet, we know that instincts urge us to do so. Surely your body looks for a strong male and that clouds your judgment. That is why I consider that at least for this period, you should leave your post as Lord"

"No no no! You can't do this to me! A Lord never leaves their post unless their life is taken away by a challenger. I'll be the shame of the tribe!"

"You are already the shame of the tribe" said Lily, expelling poison in every word.

"Lily, you..." Although Orchid kept her posture calm and proud, her fists trembled with rage.

"At this time we don't see how you can play a fair fight that leaves the tribe in accordance" Lavender declared. "You don't think clearly and you get easily distracted. We know that you have the strength to defeat any challenger, so you cannot be removed from your position as Lord. But neither do you as you should, so you have no respect from anyone. That is why we consider that it is best to declare yourself incapacitated by illness until you recover"

"But I'm not sick!"

"Your mind is sick" Lily shrieked. "It must be to feel interest in an insect that is not a mantis. Lavender insists that this is something temporary and that after a while you will be the same as always. so you are temporarily dismissed"

"I won't be able to look the rest of the tribe in the face after this. Who has heard of a dismissed Lord? Only death should snatch the throne from us"

"You are very young Orchid. Are you ready to die?" The older sister questioned.

"No... I don't want to die yet" she said, looking down. "There are still things I would like to do"

"So what do you suggest Orchid? Having you on your throne is now more a nuisance than a contribution and the delicate balance of power of the tribe is in danger"

"I..." The mantis looked down and moved restlessly, there were not many options she had. But that's why the only possible way out was so clear. "I'm leaving, I'll leave Fungal Wastes"

"Do you want to exile yourself?"

"Not quite. I'll go hunting. I'll capture the most powerful and extraordinary prey ever seen and I'll return with the prove of my feat. Then no one would dare to doubt my power anymore"

"And there will be such a creature possessing such power out there?" Lily seemed skeptical about this.

"Of course there is. The world is too big and among all the pathetic beasts that populate it, some powerful being must be. I'll find it and submit it"

"Then we'll wait for your return," Lavender conceded. "Go Orchid, show why you managed to get to power"

"I'll do that..."

The mantis left the Villa quickly without saying goodbye to anyone or looking back. She ignored the whispers and gossip that scattered the members of her tribe at every step she took, and without hesitation, she left the lands belonging to her people to enter the Fungal Wastes, in search of the glory and battle of her life.

Throughout her life, Orchid had only known the Fungal Wastes, she had never left her territory. Taking this into account, you might think that she would be lost and disoriented without knowing where to go or what to do. However this mantis had a quality that differentiated her from others of her kind: Curiosity.

She gave herself the time to listen to her prey. Every time some unsuspecting traveler entered the territory, she did not annihilate them immediately. Usually she watched over them, stalked them and, above all, paid attention to their words. Thanks to this, many times she heard conversations that talked about distant lands, science, strange creatures and wonderful people.

Many times she fantasized about the curiosities that were told and at times, she came to be tempted to explore the world around her. But it would be foolish to risk everything she had for a silly dream. Quit her position as Lord and lost the respect from everyone just to see what was beyond? Never! However, now given her delicate situation there was not much to risk, in itself she had nothing.

Among the many stories Orchid heard, there was one that always intrigued her greatly. The story of a mysterious 6-eyed hunter with a camouflage hood and a slim body. A ruthless and lethal being who killed for pleasure and whom no one could stop. He had no name and lived a solitary existence. All referred to him as the hunter, and all trembled upon hearing about him. He was the perfect prey.

Having this information, the mantis directed her steps to Green Path, where her infinite curiosity for the first time would find calm. Or at least that was what she expected, it never crossed her mind to think that she would end up wrapped in even more mysteries and doubts .

Only peace and stillness could be felt on Green Path, usually that was the norm in Green Lands, the kingdom of the mosskins. Considering how peaceful its inhabitants and the same queen of the place were, it could not be otherwise.

Green Lands was originally a territory annexed by the Pale King to his dominions, but after his fall and after the passage of some years, the entire area corresponding to Queen Gardens, Green Path and Fog Canyon had become independent and now it was an autonomous kingdom, ruled by Clare, the daughter of the former White Lady, her last great work before she died. This small root, despite her youth, had proven to have great leadership skills and a lot of cunning to deal with political issues. They assumed that it was a quality of the roots, she was a high being after all.

Clare knew that her people did not have great warriors, nor high technology to excel and defend themselves against invaders so cunningly, she had established an alliance with Hallownest Heart, the remaining remnants of the old kingdom of the Pale King, who were now under the command of Big, his half-brother from the mother, formerly known as the Hollow Knight.

In exchange for protection and support, Clara allowed free access to her lands and the controlled extraction of some resources, as long as they respected their inhabitants and their beliefs. Until now everything had worked well.

The irregular lands plagued with vegetation were very good for fighting and hunting. So it had become the usual training camp for the Knights of Hallownest Heart, and that day, they were having a particularly intense session.

Hidden in a thicket, a not very tall vessel of female identity observed her surroundings. She wore a bright violet cloak, and on her head she had four horns. Two came out from the sides of her head and pointed down (somehow resembled a pair of drooping ears) and two came out of the top of her head curving slightly backwards.

The young woman was very still, attentive to the slightest movement, she was a prey and a hunter, she must be willing to attack without hesitation, but at the same time, she had to be careful to avoid being damaged. Her entire body was in tension while she waited for some signal or something to betray her enemy. She hardly breathed and every time she shrunk more in place. Until suddenly, a movement beside her scared her and ended up jumping out of her bush "shrieking" hysterically.

Then to her surprise, she realized that what had frightened her was simply a mosscreep camouflaged in her bush. The young woman clenched her fists in frustration. She was about to complain to the green bug when she felt a stab on her back, then slowly turned to see and found another vessel of male identity. This one was wearing a dark blue cloak and had five horns , a large one coming out of his forehead and four smaller ones on the sides of his head, all slightly curved backwards. The insect had his nail pointed at the back of the four-horned woman, who annoyed made a gesture of surrender.

After that, two more vessels appeared. One of them had a carefree expression, accentuated by his small and elongated eyes. He wore a gray cloak and had three horns, one long and the other small coming out of the upper left side of his head and another short and lonely coming out of his right side. His attitude betrayed that he was a male

The last vessel could be defined as androgynous, there was nothing in them that indicated that they was male or female. They self did not feel particularly identified with any of the genders. They wore a dark purple cloak and had two long horns that came out of the upper part of their head and curved toward the center forming a heart-like figure.

When the four vessels were assembled, they seemed to start a silent discussion in which everyone seemed to criticize the four-horned woman, while she defended herself as best she could by giving a thousand different excuses.

"Kairi, I suppose you'll be aware that you made a mistake, right?" Said a deep voice with a slight tone of joviality.

The group turned and met Ogrim, the dung beetle who was in charge of their training.

".....!" Kairi waved her arms trying to apologize to her trainer for her mistake.

"Hey... Kairi, you know that when you get this way I have trouble understanding you... Actually I usually have trouble understanding all of you, you know"

The four horned snorted annoyed. Communication had always been a problem. If she wanted to tell him something, she should be very clear and precise in her message, in addition to thinking well how she would communicate it. However, when she pondered the situation, she realized that she only had excuses and there was no apology for her mistake. So she waved her hand, implying that it was no longer important.

"Oh well. However, this gives us the opportunity to comment on one of the precautions to be taken when one infiltrates enemy territory or needs to hide for some reason. Always verify that the hiding place is safe, that there are no dangerous creatures occupying the site. In this case there was only one mosscreep, but depending on the territory there may be much more lethal creatures. So you know, if you are going to hide, always check the hiding place first.

"....." The 5-horned container made some gestures that Ogrim struggled to understand.

"Let's see Lumis. Are you telling me that Hollow never has to hide?" Lumis nodded confirming his interpretation. "But Hollow is special, I don't think any of you have a strength comparable to his. When you reach such a level of power then... I guess you don't need to hide. But he won't always be around to protect you and if you have to defend by yourself, better to have all the possible resources"

"..........?" The three-horned container made a yawn gesture.

"Cliff, do you think this training is very boring?" The aforementioned nodded shamelessly, causing a sigh in Ogrim. "Seriously you still need to mature a lot, you are supposed to be Bug's royal guard, try to behave like it"

"........." The two-horned container waved its impatient sting.

"You just want to train battles, right?" The four nodded. "You really need to mature a lot. Well, we will return to this topic later. Who wants to start?"

The issue of stalking without being discovered, was something in which the young knights were still novices, however Orchid was an expert. She had been watching the group hidden behind some bushes, staying so still that she could have been confused with a statue. However, if you were observant enough, you could notice how her eyes shone with emotion.

What was in front of her was something strange and mysterious and that fascinated her. Apparently the silent knight was not the only individual of his kind. There was a whole species! The first time she saw him as a child, she thought he was a baby of a horned beetle, but growing up it was clear that he was something very different, something she never saw before. Together with her sisters they often speculated on what kind of creature he would be, they thought that maybe he was a lonely traveler coming from distant lands, or perhaps the last creature of their kind that roamed the world looking for their peers. However, what she had in front made it clear that he was not alone.

Four critters very similar to Hollow were now training duels under the supervision of the dung beetle and all seemed quite skilled. Orchid wondered if this entire race would be powerful, at least the individuals in front of her looked like it, perhaps not as much as Hollow himself, who apparently was someone outstanding even among his peers, but their talent was certainly remarkable. Perhaps if she fought two of those warriors at the same time she could have a mildly interesting duel, in fact she was tempted to challenge them. The heat of the battle that took place in front of her excited her.

It was not within the mantis' plans to kill these creatures, she just wanted to measure her abilities against them. But her posture, her gaze and basically everything in her made her look like a predator stalking her prey. And she did not noticed that someone was already stalking her.

Hollow's siblingss thought that he never hid and that he always faced the fight against his enemies, but in reality he knew how to be very stealthy, Hornet had been in charge of instructing him in the art of stalking, so this skilled vessel could walk without making noise and go unnoticed even in front of a mantis.

Orchid did not see the first blow coming, she only knew that she felt a horrible pain in her back and that her blood began to stain the floor where she was standing. However, she was accustomed to tolerate physical suffering and, unfailing, turned ready to fight back. But what she saw paralyzed her from fear.

In front of her was her silent, cold and terrible Knight. There was infinite fury in his gaze and murderous cravings were guessed. She had never seen him like this, she could hardly breathe from the impression. It was as if an overwhelming power crushed her and prevented her from moving. Such aggressiveness flowing from that individual terrified her and somehow twisted also excited her... She wanted to fight with him.

However, what she could do was little. Hollow raised his nail once more and his next attack caused Orchid to lose consciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was not a good beginning for them.
> 
> If you want to see the vessels follow this link.  
https://www.deviantart.com/susurro9/art/Cuatro-vessels-813076677
> 
> I wanted to add the image here but I could no do it because I uploaded this from my cellphone. Maybe I edit this later


	5. Taking care of the enemy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you look, I changed the age rating of the story, more than anything as a precaution, there are likely to be hot scenes, but it is clear that this is not the most important thing in the story. Okay? I tell you from now on in case anyone wants to leave this thing.

_In the middle of that vast garden that the white lady had claimed as her own, a young mantis lay defeated at the feet of a pale-skinned warrior, which emanated as much elegance as mystery through her dense clothes and her crown of hair that fell towards down. The mantis was defeated, but not subdued and even with the fire of resentment shining in her eyes, she dared to shout at the one who had brought her down._

_"Well, what are you waiting for? Kill me!" The girl shouted furiously._

_"Mai! Le'mer should not seek her end so vehemently. Nahlo, nahlo" The strange way in which this female spoke denoted that she was a foreigner, she did not seem to master the language of the place very well._

_"Only the end awaits a mantis that has been defeated. I can no longer present myself to mine! Kill me and save me the shame, will you?"_

_"Che' doesn't want to end a girl so young, che' can't"_

_"You are cruel... You destroy my life and then you don't want to repair it"_

_"Le'mer had responsibility, invaded the gardens of Meled 'Queen" Che' had to stop her, it's not her territory, but che' doesn't like violence and doesn't want such a young girl to end Moina. Wai Le'mer doesn't go home with her family? They sure worried.."_

_"Moina is dead?" The way she spoke made it a bit difficult for her to understand. "It doesn't matter. If they see me in this state and guess my defeat before the sworn enemy, nothing good will hold my destiny"_

_The silver knight cocked her head curiously._

_She knew the brutal customs of the mantis, but she did not understand them. How could they condemn someone just for losing? Everyone goes through moments of weakness but that does not mean that someone is weak. She looked at the girl in front with grief. Poor mantis, someone so young did not deserve to see her future shattered by so little. After all she was Ze'mer, one of the big 5, few or none could match her in strength. The girla was doomed to defeat from the moment when they started fighting_

_She sighed and made a decision. She couldn't leave her abandoned to her fate. What kind of knight would she be if she did? Perhaps Driyya scolded her for such an act of folly, after all this girl belonged to the tribe that opposed her beloved king, but she simply could not leave her, something in her yelled at her to help her. She reached down and extended her hand to the mantis._

_"Come. Che' will take care of Le'mer until she gets well and can return home, nobody will know le' lost. It's a promise. What is Le'mer name?"_

_The mantis looked at her with a puzzled expression, almost as if she thought she was crazy. But in her desperate situation she had nothing to lose. She knew it was a dishonor to accept help from an enemy, but at the bottom of her heart, she wanted to live and if this strange knight offered her that opportunity, she would put all her hopes on her. She extended her claw and trusted blindly._

_"My name is Clover."_

_........................_

Ogrim opened his eyes waking up from his reveries. For an instant an old memory that he believed lost had resurfaced in his mind. The first encounter between her dear friend Ze'mer and that mantis that would later be her lover. That was an inevitable tragedy that nobody could foresee. He wish he could have done something in that time, but as always he didn't realize anything. The dramas always went around without him noticing and by the time he finally realized, it was too late, all help was useless.

If he had intervened perhaps that girl would not have died and Ze'mer would not have been consumed by sadness. He couldn't even help her fulfill her last wish. It was Hollow who delivered that precious gift to Clover's grave helping her Ze'mer rest in peace. That was another of the faults that the poor beetle carried on his back, he was a lousy friend, he was never for those who needed him. That was why he was now so determined to be useful, and he focused all his energies on the training and education of the young vessels, that was the wish of his new king and he intended to give his life to it.

Although educating those kids was a challenge.

The progeny of the former Pale King presented several unexpected peculiarities, including a naturally childish and naive character. Although each vessel had a unique personality, they all shared a longing for the game, curiosity and the lack of seriousness so common in the children. Fortunately, the king was much more mature than his siblings, but at times he had his falls where he showed his carefree nature. At least both the queen of the Deepnest and the queen of Green Lands were her sisters and they were patient with him, well... Hornet not so much... It was still do shocking for him to see that little spider scolding his sovereign.

The dung beetle looked up at the mantis that lay moored in a completely motionless wood and at their mercy. Around her the four vessels watched her curiously, talking to each other about something he couldn't guess. They really looked like children. He had to scold them several times to prevent them from Sting the mantis with sticks and not getting close to touching her. She was unconscious but could wake up at any time, and that was not a very polite behavior with a stranger.

However, in contrast to the candor of his students, Hollow showed a hard and cold attitude. It was very rare to see the knight in that state, he was usually cheerful, affectionate and perhaps somewhat impertinent with his friends and family, with strangers he used to be stoic and silent, but whatever the situation, he was never aggressive. However now it seemed that he was going to kill the first one to come forward.

Well, in part he understood him. The only thing that could alter Hollow was that someone harm his family and having caught this mantis preparing to attack them obviously get him mad. Surely he would have killed her if he hadn't recognized her... A Lord Mantis... Killing her would have meant a big problem... Maybe even a declaration of war.

What they least wanted at that time was to enter into conflict with anyone, and in case there was a disagreement with the mantis tribe, the most affected would be Clare, since her territories were the ones with the easiest access for them and unfortunately, the Young root was the one who was in worse condition to respond to an attack, mostly they would depend on the protection that Hallownest Heart could give them.

Ogrim shook his head trying to remove those gloomy thoughts. He had to be positive, maybe things could be fixed peacefully and avoid problems, and who had incurred the infraction was the mantis. She was the one who entered into foreign territory without announcing herself and proceeded to attack their inhabitants. The Queen of Green Lands was the one who should be offended by such an intrusion, if they decided to condemn the Lord, the mantis should not object. Even so, the first thing was to find out what was happening and for that they needed her to wake up.

They had already been waiting for the Lord to react for a couple of hours, apparently Hollow had exceeded with his attack, he could have really killed her. Fortunately they managed to cure her a little with some bottled water from the hot springs, but that was not enough and she would need more rest. Poor Mantis, facing Hollow's anger was not easy.

Suddenly an applause distracted him. Kairi was drawing his attention while Cliff pointed to the captive jumping with excitement. Hollow made a dash and in a second he was in front of the insect with his nail outside ready to attack at the slightest threat. In Ogrim's opinion he was exaggerated, her ties were firm and she could do nothing.

The beetle approached the place. as none of the children could speak (In an easily audible volume), it was his turn to act as a mediator.

Orchid regained consciousness afflicted by the burning pain that ran through her entire body. As far as she remembered, she had never felt such extreme pain. She opened her eyes and for a moment her blurry gaze was only able to distinguish spots. She had to blink several times before clearing her vision and noticing the nail that was a few centimeters from her face.

After the initial shock, she quickly intended to take her own weapon to face her attacker, but it was then that she realized that she was tied to a wood. She squirmed to free herself, but the ropes were too tight, she was trapped and subjected to the will of her aggressors, one of whom was her silent knight. Some discomfort settled in her stomach, she knew there was no reason for this but... Somehow this made her feel hurt.

"Very well, I see that you have woken up" said Ogrim, presenting himself to the mantis that gave him a glacial look. Perhaps she was at a total disadvantage but not because of that she was going to be humiliated.

"....." Orchid refused to say a word.

"Ahem... I suppose you have already realized your current situation, you are bound and surrounded by skilled knights"

At first, Ogrim was a little surprised by the expression of disbelief that the mantis dedicated to him, although it made more sense when he turned to see and found that one of the skilled knights was tickling another.

"Kairi stops bothering Chari! And behave! You are no longer children!" The involved made a slight bow as an apology "Ahem... As I said, it is in your best interest to cooperate, because you find yourself at a disadvantage and things may not end favorably for you... We already noticed that you are one of the Lord of the mantis, which makes your presence in these lands very suspicious..."

"I came here on my own. My tribe has nothing to do with this matter" she hastened to clarify.

"Oh... I see..." It took Ogrim a couple of seconds to recover. "And what were you doing in the Green Lands?"

"Hunt"

Ogrim noticed that Hollow's grip on his nail had hardened and trembled slightly, it was surely the rage for the fact that this mantis saw his siblings as mere hunting prey.

"Did you intend to hunt these guys?" The mantis took her time before answering.

"No. I just watched them, they seemed curious. Another creature is the objective of my hunt"

This response seemed to relax Hollow a little, but not because of that he stopped seeing her suspiciously or lowered his weapon.

"Then you have another objective... However, a foreigner like you cannot hunt in these territories without the authorization of Queen Clare, that is a crime"

Orchid cursed silently. She forgot to take that detail into account. Hallownest's new political situation divided into five different kingdoms meant that she could no longer move freely. In the past, she could wander and hunt through all areas without worrying too much about permits and things, the only law that governed them was to have the strength to survive, but these silly modern laws complicated everything. Having to ask permission to hunt? Who could imagine such idiocy! But well, these were the methods that the weak kings had invented to favor the survival of the scum. They had already proven how pathetic the Queen of Deep Nest was, surely the ruler of the Hallownet Heart would be the same.

".........?" Lumis looked at Ogrim questioningly.

"What are we going to do with her?" He wanted to check the question. "Well, I'm not sure. As this incident occurred in the Clare's territories, it should be she who decided the fate of this mantis. However, we are her military force, so we could take the attribution of punishing this intruder"

"........"Lumis gestured to the beetle asking him to stoop.

The vessels could speak at a low and almost inaudible volume, they usually used their own sign language to communicate, but occasionally when they needed to express complex ideas or explanations, they asked others to come closer to be able to speak to their ears, as it was in this case .

"Mmm? Interesting proposal, very interesting indeed Lumis" Ogrim straightened and turned his eyes to the captive who looked at them curiously. "You... As one of the Lord who rules in Fungal Wastes, you are their representative and a figure of high political importance... I suppose that by the meeting you had a few days ago with the Queen of Deepnest you'll be aware of the interest there is in the mushrooms that grow in your territory and of the intentions of establishing an agreement to obtain the permits of its extraction"

Orchid became pale when she heard this. They planned to use her as a currency to negotiate a deal. But how vile! However, the mantis would never allow foreigners to invade their lands or establish agreements with anyone, even if it was at the cost of her live. No one would move a finger to save her and would not mind letting her die. She would not reproach them for anything, because she would do the same in her situation.

However, what worried her was the idea of being presented to her tribe by displaying her as a trophy and demanding the agreement. That would be a horrible humiliation! The worst of the worst, she would win the contempt of everyone and probably they would subject her to horrible torments more terrible before killing her.

Expelled from her position as Lord, captured by the enemy and used as currency, her life was over, definitely over. She removed herself trying to free herself from her bonds desperately, she was not going to let them use her, at least that shame should be avoided.

"Oh, you better not bother trying to free yourself" Ogrim pointed out. "We make sure to tie you well, so don't try anything. In addition, Hollow is looking at you, before the slightest suspicious movement he won't hesitate to hurt you"

Although that should have been a deterrent threat, it was extremely attractive for the mantis. She was already determined to die to keep what little she had left of honor and to die at the hands of the sensual silent knight would be an interesting addition. The truth, for a moment she considered the twisted of the idea, but in the desperate situation in which she was, in reality it didn't matter much anymore.

"We will take you to our king where you will be locked up until we decide what we will do with you."

Obviously to move her to where Big was, they had to untie her, so this was the only opportunity she would have to do something and avoid her dire destiny.

She stood very still pretending submission and cooperation while the three-horned vessel approached to untie her. At his side in an extremely protective posture, Hollow did not take his eyes off her and kept the silent threat of his nail. She didn't look away either and with glacial expression she waited for the appropriate moment.

Cliff had already finished unleashing the mantis of the wood, however he kept her hands firmly tied, in addition to this, the mantis's weapon was well guarded by Lumis. Theoretically she should not be able to make any movement, but they had underestimated her.

Cliff who was barely a rookie in training could not be compared to a professional killer like Orchid.

The mantis made a rapid movement with which she threw the vessel to the floor, however he did not release the rope with which he held her hands. But Orchid did not care, what she was looking for was something else. Hollow immediately reacted to her actions and proceeded to attack her. The mantis did not oppose, she wanted this, she longed for the edge of his stinger to take her life, so she exposed her bare chest to the deadly wound, but Hollow's reflexes were sharp and he had no desire to end her life. At least not yet.

The nail pierced the shell of the insect, but it did not sink to the depth necessary to kill her. She tried to push harder for the weapon to bury in herself, but Hollow backed away by ripping it from her body.

Orchid fell to her knees weakened by the pain and the blood that escaped from her chest in the face of the horror of all the spectators.

"Kill me... Kill me at once..." She said in a choked voice.

"Miss!" Ogrim shouted in alarm. "Quick! Bring another bottle of hot springs water, we can't let her die"

"It's useless." The mantis looked at them resentfully. "It's useless! I won't serve you for your negotiations. My sisters would rather let me die before accepting a deal with you. Right now I'm just a hindrance to them. So don't believe you will achieve something by keeping me alive! Just... Kill me..."

Ogrim's eyes were sad to hear those words, apparently, even with all the years that had passed, the mantis society remained the same, ruled by brutality and strength, where there was not even the slightest affection even between relatives. Poor unfortunate Mantis, if what she said was the truth, it would probably be best to kill her as she asked. What a tragic end for the one who was once a sovereign, but it was the most honorable end she could have.

Ogrim was about to take out his own weapon when he noticed that Hollow was starting to act somewhat strangely. Then a shiver ran down his spine sensing what was about to happen. Hollow's lack of common sense was about to cause a disaster!

There were many things that Hollow did not understand about the world, the mantis society was one of them. They were not a race of insects with whom he had had a close relationship, normally he was just passing through their village and never intended to interact with anyone. Everyone talked about the brutality of the mantis but he could not assume it at all. It was simply that it was unthinkable for him that someone was willing to let their sister die without even making a minimum attempt to save her.

That was why Orchid's statement had broken his heart. Poor Mantis! Surely she must be destroyed by the rejection of her relatives.

In less than three seconds Hollow put together a whole movie in her head. It didn't cost him much to relate Orchid's rejection to her poor performance during the battle against Hornet. Surely they expelled her and in her mind she could imagine the poor mantis crying disconsolately, wandering through the tunnels of Fungal Wastes, looking for food, alone sad and abandoned. Then the poor would reach Green Path where she would find these siblings in the middle of their training. He could almost see her wanting to scream in frustration at the envy caused by this united family. Surely that's why she looked at them with such intensity!

She was a poor soul in disgrace, without a helping hand to help her, who was now in such a state of despair that she only wanted to die of sadness. Hollow himself already wanted to cry at this tragic story that had been invented.

That is why the knight at that time dropped his weapon and knelt before her. Orchid just looked at him suspiciously waiting for his next move, which was a warm and affectionate hug. The mantis face dyed red as she felt a suffocating heat surrounding her. Then she perceived how the silent knight approached his face to her ear and with his soft and whispering voice he said.

"From now on I'll take care of you"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I put all my effort into writing Ze'mer's dialogues with the style of the game, I hope I have succeeded. If anyone has any suggestions to improve it let me know.


	6. Prisioner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A while ago, a friend shared with me an image of a mantis Lord taking off her horns, revealing that these were actually a kind of crown under which her antennae were.
> 
> I included this idea in my fic because it seemed very logical to me. I wish I could include the image here, but I have no idea who the Author is.

"Ah! No! Hollow not there! Aaag! That part is very sensitive! Aaag!"

The scandalous cries of Orchid were heard loud and clear despite Ogrim's efforts to ignore them. What the hell was Hollow doing to that poor mantis? He was only supposed to wash the blood on her.

He should never have let him to do that. Although the mantis was somewhat weak from the loss of blood, she could bathe alone perfectly. But Hollow had taken his duty to take care of her very seriously, and he was determined to be the one who assisted her in those tasks. But because of the way the mantis moaned, the situation seemed different.

Suddenly the beetle felt a touch on his hand. Lumis caught his attention and looked at him questioningly. Ogrim just sighed.

The vessels had no gender defined, nor the ability to reproduce, therefore, they were ignorant and absolutely innocent in everything related to that topic. Ogrim interpreted Orchid's moans in a way that they couldn't. For the young vessels that was just the tantrum of a capricious insect that didn't like to bathe.

Meanwhile Orchid did not know very well if she was in heaven or hell. Having Hollow so aware of her was delightful, feeling his hands brushing her shell, rubbing it with the sponge and the soap was extremely pleasant, but at the same time embarrassing. He had absolute control over her, his firm grip prevented her from moving. She felt vulnerable in his hands, he could touch every part he wanted from her body and she didn't have the strength to oppose. She could only let herself be handled and accept what he did. He was humiliating her with the excuse of bathing her... And the worst part is that she liked it.

It was her secret, she loved feeling dominated, having a powerful male imposing himself on her was her fantasy, something that due to her innate strength she would hardly find in her tribe. But here she was, weakened by the loss of blood, with Hollow on top of her keeping her motionless against the floor using his own weight, cutting off almost any possibility of movement, making her efforts for release herself useless, while he passing the sponge by her tail, one of her most sensitive areas. Orchid was writhing in her place overwhelmed by the sensations, it was as if he forced her to feel pleasure.

Orchid imagined in her mind to her silent knight enjoying the situation, trying to makeher groan while she struggled not to please him... But the reality was that Hollow did not know anything. With the innocence of a child, he simply tried to leave her as clean as possible so that she would be pretty and presentable. Big could be intimidating as she was going to meet his brother, he wanted to give her as much security as possible, a good presentation was a great help.

Although he did not understand why this mantis had so much rejection of the bathe, she was no longer a capricious grub. He never had so many problems when he was younger and his sister bathed him, although of course he loved the water. Maybe she didn't find it so nice and that's why she complained so much.

Orchid was feeling more and more stunned by the sensations that overwhelmed her and her mind began to wander into curious fantasies that were suddenly slashed by a bucket of cold water, which not only rinsed her, it also left Hollow soaked.

They both looked up and met Ogrim who carried the empty bucket in his hands and looked at them severely.

"She is already clean! Let's go at once!"

Hollow gave him an annoyed look at the interruption, but he quickly forgot his angry and proceeded to find a towel with which to dry the mantis. It was good that the shelter given by the mosskins had all kinds of comforts, of course within the possibilities of their humble kingdom. They did not have showers or ponds, but the bath with buckets and sponges was not bad, Orchid had still been clean.

The female already subdued as she was did not even dare to put the slightest resistance to Hollow, who dried her delicately and almost affectionately. The Lord did not fully understand his behavior, nor did she understand why she was fascinated by it. After the "torture" to which he subjected her during the bath, he now treated her with infinite tenderness, as if she were a delicate and fragile creature. Her heart was beating at his attention and she held the urge to hug him. He was too cute with her.

However that could not be, a mantis could not demonstrate such a degree of weakness, and she had already been submitted in every possible way. In truth she no longer deserved to be called a Lord, her sisters were right, she could no longer hold the position .

Hollow felt worried when he saw the sad countenance of the mantis, she was surely thinking about her family and how much she missed them. But he would take care of making her feel better, he would give her all the affection and attention possible while recovering. He would get pluck a smile from her usually serious face. So with all his good will, he went to look for the mantis's crown and her royal mantle that he had previously taken from her to bathe her.

The warrior with the best of smiles offered her accessories, but to his surprise, the insect rejected them with a swipe.

"Take those things away from me, I'm no longer worthy of using them"

Such a statement of the insect left him somewhat confused. Why couldn't she wear her crown and mantle? He did not understand. But who did understand everything perfectly was Ogrim. His previous experience with Ze'mer's lover had made him know the mantis psychology quite well.

"Don't insist, Hollow" he said, seeing the vessel picking up the mantis' belongings again. "She won't use it anymore"

Ogrim gave no further explanations and Hollow was left doubting why she did not want to wear her crown and cmantle. Could it be because he had taken them? Perhaps it would be some tradition of her kind that dictated that no one should touch her crown, if so, this made him feel very guilty. Now she could not wear her favorite accessories.

Seeking to compensate her in some way, he took off his own gray cloak and placed it on the lady, who looked at him confused.

"Ah... Hollow. Are you sure to leave your training cloak to her?"

"..." He waved his hands down.

"I know you have more cloaks but..."

"..." He headed for his luggage from where he pulled out another light-colored cloak with silver shoulder pads.

"The knight's cloak... Yeah well... I know you have that one to wear now but I didn't say it for that... It's just that, you gave your own cloak to her and well... That's... Like a promise of commitment... How to swear to be by her side and..."

"..." Hollow looked at him with determination and nodded confirming that he was willing to do that.

Orchid began to feel dizzy and her face was so red that the poor female looked like a tomato. She needed air, this was too much for her. He had given to her his cloak. According to an old custom of the Hallownest Knights, that was the equivalent of a proposal of marriage. And she didn't want to get married! The mantis did not marry nor establish a bond with someone, that was a sign of weakness. The mantis were free, never tied to anyone. But she could not help feeling excited and that made her hate herself.

Feeling that she needed fresh air she stood up and staggered to the exit of the shelter where they were. There in the hall she found the four vessels who looked at her curiously to see her strange behavior and wearing Hollow's cloak. They also did not know the custom but it seemed curious that his brother had given her his clothes.

Once Orchid was outside, Hollow left the shelter running worriedly fearing he had offended her in some way. Then wanting to apologize he took her by the shoulder to get her attention, but as soon as she felt his touch, she swatted him away.

"Don't touch me!" She shouted, "Don't think I'm going to accept you! I'll never do it!"

The mantis looked at him as hard and distant as she could, but her heart softened when she saw Hollow's sad face. She never saw an insect so sad and couldn't help feeling bad about it. Then with a pair of coughs she added.

"I... I'll keep the cloak, But don't think weird ideas! This... It's just because I need it. Nothing else!" She finished with her face blushing.

So ambiguous. Orchid hated having been like that. She didn't want the cloak but she kept it. She rejected him but she didn't take him away. What thoughts would her knight keep in his eternal silence in the face of her contradictory behavior? Whatever it was, she would remain in mystery. A few seconds later, Ogrim arrived along with the vessels to interrupt the moment and lead them to King Big's palace.

The ancient legend of the Pale King said that one day, during the height of the infection, the monarch with his most loyal subjects and his palace disappeared in the middle of nowhere, leaving only a piece of barren and empty land where there were only ruins and a kingsmould protecting the memory of its creator.

That was a story that looked more like a legend than a real event, and many came to believe it, but some privileged people knew the truth. They knew that the White Palace was still there, hidden in another dimension through a very powerful spell. One of those who knew this was the old Hollow Knight.

Big -as his brothers had nicknamed him because of his size- had some trained magical abilities and a great willingness to learn, as well as a deep longing for his past. Despite all the horrors he had experienced and all the suffering he had to endure while trying to silence his heart and mind, he had memories he treasured, so he wanted to bring back the White Palace.

It was almost a year of study of magic and a lot of practice, where more than once he fainted from the effort. But still, after all his hard work, he managed to break the seal of the White Palace and return it to the earthly dimension, where he could finally take his siblings to live there, at least to those who wanted to. They were 10,527 siblings, but of all of them, only a handful wanted to remain on the surface, the rest chose to remain in the abyss.

After the resurgence of the palace, a series of events occurred, rare, complicated and ridiculous, culminating in the coronation of Big as King of Hallownest, a position he had so far maintained. Although it was not easy either, at the beginning, some bugs were against his government because they wanted the throne for themselves, besides there were many things to rebuild and the kingdom was very separate. But with much effort and the help of his abundant family, he managed to start the reconstruction of Hallownest and turn it into a prosperous kingdom.

Orchid had left Fungal Wastes just once or twice, and she had never gone to any of the modern cities designed by the Pale King. So for her, any construction was a novelty, and one as impressive as the White Palace was wonderful. She almost gasped when she spotted those white walls that almost seemed to shine for their clarity, or those towering towers and their stone ornaments.

The poor mantis already had a hard time standing, she had to lean on Ogrim so she wouldn't fall. It was only because of her obvious weakness and Hollow's insistence that her hands had not been tied.

However, in the midst of all that whiteness, there was a black dot, literally speaking. In a corner next to the large entrance gate was a somewhat disturbing black statue. This represented a bug with four arms, eight eyes and numerous horns on its head. The contrast that the sculpture made with the neatness of the rest of the place was striking, but apparently that was more than an ornament, because the group before entering the castle proceeded to dedicate some prayers to the image.

Orchid watched curiously as the bugs closed their eyes, clasped their palms while muttering something unintelligible. What a curious thing, as far as She knew, the Pale King did not support the veneration of other deities, he only sought attention for himself. The current king seemed to be very different.

When everyone finished their prayers, the mantis could not help to make a comment.

"I didn't imagine you were the religious type"

"Well, our king is a fervent believer in the Lord of the Shades and he claims to have been favored by him" Ogrim explained.

"Ah, a sovereign of weak nature who expects solutions to his problems to be granted to them by a god." She didn't mind sounding rude, she always felt contempt for the bugs who trusted their destiny in the gods.

"The Lord of Shades is not a god who fix your life. He gives you the tools to fix it yourself. Although they say he is something capricious and occasionally does some miracle"

Ogrim managed to hide the annoyance caused by the comment of the female. The age had made him wise and he knew the futility of fighting with a weakened mantis. In addition, she herself would swallow her words when she met the king in person.

The group entered the palace where a group of servants ran to meet them and check if they needed anything. Orchid was struck that some of these insects were of the races she already knew, such as beetles or crickets, while others belonged to the same curious species of Hollow. Apparently it was a whole race that had colonized those lands.

She analyzed at the group of vessels, they did not seem very strong. As far as she could see, Hollow was the only decent warrior of all that troop of vermin.

"Call the guards to escort this mantis to the dungeons" Ogrim told one of the servants.

".....!" Hollow immediately opposed this. He couldn't say anything, but it was obvious what he wanted to communicate.

"Remember she is a criminal, Hollow. She was hunting in the territories of Queen Clare without authorization. She cannot be without punishment"

"......" He approached Orchid and took her hand. Immediately her face was dyed red, which did not go unnoticed by anyone.

The servants who observed the situation then noticed the fact that the mantis wore Hollow's cloak. The vessels obviously did not know the meaning of this, but the others were quick to explain it discreetly.

Soon even the four vessels in training learned about the context of the situation and the murmurs soon expanded. The only one who did not know anything was Hollow. And this made Ogrim very nervous, now he definitely didn't want Hollow to get attached to that creature.

"You can't take care of that mantis, she's a criminal!"

"......" Hollow made a gesture that meant weakness.

"That she is weak does not excuse her. Also, where do you plan to host her?"

"......" He pointed to himself communicating an answer that left Ogrim alarmed.

"Hollow! You can't have her sleeping with you!"

Orchid's face that was already red began to light up to the point that already looked like a sparkler. She even began to feel dizzy at the prospect of sharing a room with the knight. Sleeping in the same room that he would not be a problem? Maybe he didn't have enough beds, if that were the case then they would have to share a bed and...

The mantis staggered overwhelmed by the piles of ideas that crossed her mind, even Hollow had to hold her so she wouldn't fall, unfortunately the physical contact with him only made her get worse. While Ogrim covered his face with his claws regretting the lack of common sense of the young.

"Hollow, you don't understand anything..."

The whispering of those who watched this situation began to rise to the point of impudence, and Ogrim being in charge of this bunch of "children" obviously could not afford it.

"Stop! Everyone back to work! You four" He addressed his four students "later I want to talk to you. As for you…” This time he addressed to Hollow, who held the mantis protective.

Ogrim knew this knight very well, he had a protective nature and was extremely stubborn. No matter what he did, Hollow was not going to abandon that creature unless she betrayed him. He sighed defeated and considered his options, which were not so many.

"Okay, we'll do it in your way. We'll take the Lord to the guest room that is close to mine (so I can keep her under surveillance). But in the face of the first aggressive behavior she presents, she goes to the dungeon. Understood?" Hollow agreed with the deal and with a nod he indicated to Orchid to follow them.

The poor insect had some problems to keep stand. She was very weak and her whole body ached, her legs had no strength and she felt that she would fall asleep at any moment. She hated being so vulnerable and hated even more not having the ability to end that humiliation. Now she was the guest of the invaders, who had saved her and were also providing her with a bed and shelter. She wish she had some weapon at her fingertips, with all the blood that had already lost surely would suffice one more wound to kill her.

As they walked through the diaphanous halls of the palace, Orchid noticed how each insect they met respectfully greeted her silent knight and many gave him a look of admiration. Apparently he was very beloved for everyone. She could even notice several females who gave him seductive looks. A deep rage settled in her chest at the prospect of one of those bastards approaching his knight... And when she realized this she wanted to hit herself. Since when was he hers? And what did she care with who he would relate to?

She sighed regretfully. Maybe her sisters were right and she was sick, those feelings were not normal and only made her feel bad. Hollow was a handsome and strong male, sure he had already had numerous lovers, even maybe some bastards out there.

Or maybe not. Unlike the mantis that birth their children and these are raised together by the whole tribe, the other bugs tended to be grouped into families that cared only for their own offspring. If Hollow had any child, they might be hovering nearby. What a relief... Why was she feeling relieved?

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't realize that they had already reached her room. Orchid entered the room automatically and dropped onto the soft bed, her body could no longer hold on. However, as soon as she came into contact with the bed, she was impressed by the softness of this. She had never touched something so exquisite. She began to press the bed and rub against the sheets enchanted with its texture.

While the lady related to the bed, Ogrim and Hollow had one last conversation.

"Hollow, I want you to know that I don't agree with this. Traditionally mantis have always been opponents of the king's government. They are distrustful, wild and violent, you have a professional murderer in your castle. She could attack Big!"

"......" Hollow made the gesture that meant weakness again.

"She is weak now, but at some point she will recover. I don't like the idea of having that monster free. It is also suspicious, mantis never leave their territory, that you can't deny. Here is something murky"

"......" Hollow shook his head, refusing to accept his friend's words.

"Hollow... You're on his side just because that story of her sisters' rejection. But you don't know what secrets hidden in her heart. She could be a treacherous harpy. Look at her!"

Both turned their eyes to the mantis that was in bed rubbing against the sheets with an expression of complete happiness. the truth at that moment she looked more adorable than lethal. But as soon as the mantis realized that they were watching her, she quickly resumed a more dignified posture and threw a pillow at Ogrim's face.

Perceiving the discomfort of the mantis, they stopped paying attention to her. Then Ogrim and Hollow exchanged glances.

"....." The knight crossed his arms and looked at him in such a way that you could guess the sarcastic comment that was hidden in that gesture.

"It's okay! Do what you want! But if a problem occurs, you are responsible. You are already an adult anyway"

"....." He nodded demonstrating his total determination in that matter.

The beetle sighed defeated and asked him to leave the room to leave his guest quiet.

Orchid watched them leave without saying anything, she just kept quiet in her bed with a severe and vigilant posture. Ogrim narrowed his eyes when he saw her like that. Before leaving and closing the door he decided to dedicate a few last words.

"Later you will be brought something to eat, meanwhile, you are not authorized to leave. Tomorrow you will have an audience with the king, he will decide your destiny. I'm watching you, don't try anything."

After delivering his message, the beetle disappeared behind the door, which emitted a slight click, which implied that it had been locked.

Orchid let out a sigh and threw herself against the bed, her body claimed rest, and she was so sleepy that she was on the verge of collapse. How long would it take for her body to replenish lost blood? What a pathetic situation. In her tribe they would have let her die, I wish these guys would let her die.

Everything seemed to go from bad to worse, every time she looked more humiliated and her ego more shattered. When would her torment end? At that moment in which the anguish already surpassed her, she simply collapsed. She closed her eyes and let a lonely tear roll down her face, then surrendered to the comfort of sleep.


	7. Audience with the king

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From this point at certain times, I will resort to the old system that I used when writing my Pokémon fanfics. The dialogues spoken in a language that not everyone can understand are in brackets

Since the days when the old Pale King ruled, many things had changed, some laws had been abolished and new ones created, some knowledge and inventions had been lost, but in turn others had been created, and yet there was something that regardless of the passing of time, it had remained the same: The taste of servitude for gossip.

No matter the status or social class, no one escaped the sharp tongues of the maids, who did not hesitate to comment on the affairs of this or that person, the strange customs of the knights, or the shame that a certain noble passed when they made an indiscretion at the party the other day.

This is why the story of the mysterious guest who was staying in the room next to Ogrim was obviously not going to go unnoticed. Even if the opposite was attempted.

It was only a handful of bugs that saw the mantis arrive at the palace, but after a few hours everyone was aware. Having so few details of the story, the unknowns had been filled with imagination. The story that prevailed the most said that this mantis was Hollow's girlfriend. After all, they had seen her dressed in his training cloak and she had stayed in a comfortable room with all the considerations. Was there another better explanation for this whole matter?

Hollow was the best knight in the kingdom, the strongest and the one with the most noble heart. Of course, they also recognized his lack of sense regarding certain matters, but despite that he was much appreciated in the community. That's why most people felt worried about his relationship with the mantis. It wasn't long since Hollow had reached adulthood and this female looked older. Wouldn't she be manipulating him? Looking to take advantage of him for his status or to get some benefit?

They did not know much about the mantis society or their particular philosophy of life, they were simply a mystery. The little they knew about them was that they had wild and violent behaviors. Why precisely of all insects did Hollow have to look at a mantis? This only helped to increase the myths and stories told about them.

"They have a forbidden relationship and he had to kidnap the girl in order to have her" some said.

"The mantis courted him before he reached adulthood" others spoke.

"He beat her in combat and that is why she must marry him now, It is a mantis customs," said others.

Of course, no one was even close to getting the right answer. But everyone spread the story with such vehemence that suddenly the fantasy seemed much more credible than reality and for everyone, that mantis became Hollow's official girlfriend. And she had arrived to be presented before the king. Maybe soon there would be a wedding. And it was all this unjustified gossip that ended up causing a series of misunderstandings.

It all started early in the morning when Big woke up to start his daily routine. The king needed a ridiculously small amount of sleep that was limited to a few hours during the night, a small half-hour nap in the afternoon, and that was enough to work well all day.

As he always got up almost at dawn, he took time to decorate himself and then walked to the kitchen for breakfast. He always had lunch and dinner in the great dining room of the palace, with some noblemen or with some of his siblings, but breakfast was his moment of solitude and introspection, where he sat at the humble kitchen table, dedicated himself to read the morning newspaper and listen to the maids' conversations. Of course, they did not know that the king was always attentive to every word, because he always looked distracted and sleepy and Big knew how to act with discretion, so it was not too much trouble to have him there and they spoke freely.

That morning, Big seemed very focused on reading an article about the increase in crime in the commercial district of the City of Tears, but every now and then he paid attention to the conversation that the chief cook had with one of her assistants. Although at first he was not very interested in their words, as soon as his brother's name came out, he turned his full attention to the females, of course he turned the page of the newspaper to continue pretending to read.

"Yes, everyone talks about it," said the ladybug boss. "It's nothing less than a mantis, yesterday they saw her arrive wearing Hollow's cloak. Apparently our dear knight wanted to make it very clear that she is his"

"A mantis..." The dragonfly looked impressed. "Of all the girls he could have chosen I didn't imagine that he would choose a mantis. That is, there were many interested in him, but Hollow never paid the slightest attention to anyone"

"They say he had a love he lost in his past and that after that, he never wanted to be with anyone. But it is seen that this mantis was able to conquer him in some way. I ask to myself what he saw in her"

"Maybe she is very passionate? They say that the mantis are very hot and sensual, although there is also the rumor that they devour the head of their partners during intercourse"

"Oh no! I hope that is a lie and that Hollow doesn't lose his head on the wedding night."

"But what do you say Suzana? Who's talking about the wedding?"

"But there has to be a wedding, for something he brought her here. If they were keeping their relationship in secret, why admit it now? Because they plan to take the next step. It's obvious!"

For Big it was tremendously complicated to maintain composure and pretend to read the newspaper. He was dying to ask for more details and go see his brother to find out about the matter. But he stood firm without saying a word, after all he was an expert on that. He spent his childhood and adolescence pretending he had no feelings and that his mind was too empty to understand anything.

Finally he finished his breakfast and left the kitchen. Normally he would have gone to his office to organize the paperwork and plan his day, but this time he took a small detour and headed to his brother's room. He already knew that he was going to introduce him to his girlfriend that same day, but he was too impatient. Unfortunately, Hollow's room was one of the farthest, since it was at the bottom of the hallway of the bedrooms, before arriving there he had to pass in front of Ogrim's room and of course the mysterious guest's.

When the king noticed this he hesitated. The right thing would be to talk to Hollow first, but his curiosity urged him to knock on the door and introduce himself to the guest. What should he do?

A strange sound coming from the room determined his decision. Big began to hear groans, some strange ones. It didn't sound exactly like groans of pain, in fact he didn't remember hearing something like that before. He began to feel worried. Would she have gotten sick? Maybe she had stomach problems.

Big shared the same childhood innocence of his entire race, and he did not think that there was any problem in entering only the mantis room to help her. He knew some healing spells that could relieve her, at least momentarily.

When he entered the place, he was surprised by a faint smell that was something strange, he remembered having perceived it sometime in his life, but he could not relate it to anything in particular. He forgot that scent and inspected the room with his eyes. It was a common bedroom, simple and practical, with minimal furniture to function. It wasn't very big, but it was nice and cozy, even in its simplicity nobody would complain about having to stay there.

Soon he spotted the mantis that lay asleep on the soft bed. No wonder, it was still early for most insects. He approached to observe her. She did not seem upset but still complained in dreams. Was she having a nightmare? Surely that was it, she looked very restless under the covers, something was moving down there.

With the best of intentions, he began to gently shake the insect trying to wake her up, but somehow this proved counterproductive, since Orchid gave a shout so loud that Big got scared and forgot all delicacy. He began to shake the mantis harder to waking her up.

The poor Orchid was snatched from her dream abruptly and suddenly, leaving her in a state of total confusion. At one time she was receiving a pleasant session of massages in her tail given by her sensual silent knight, and the next she was in a bed, in a room she did not remember, with a giant monster on top looking at her with worried eyes.

This time the shout that Orchid gave was of fear and surprise. However, mantis are not cowardly and face danger without hesitation, they prefer to die fighting rather than escape. That is why, instinctively, she looked for her weapon, but when she did not find it, the memories of the previous day assaulted her. They had confiscated it to prevent her from trying to escape or attack some innocent. But if she didn't have her spear, then she would use her claws.

She threw herself against Big, ready to stick her claws in his eyes, but a dizziness prevented her from achieving it. Orchid had anemia after all the blood lost the day before and it was not something she was going to recover in one night. She was too weak to give a decent fight. The insect simply collapsed being received by Big in his arms who looked increasingly nervous.

He carefully laid her on the bed and stared at her carefully without letting go of his grip in case she fainted again. This protective attitude began to make her more and more nervous. Who was this bug? He was huge! And cute... She wanted to slap herself. Why on earth did she think about those things when she had a guy on top who could kill her with a single movement?!

Orchid's scream alerted nearby insects that something was happening. Ogrim almost fell off the bed of fright and two servants who were around almost broke the ornaments they were cleaning. Everyone ran to the sound source and when they arrived, what they saw left them speechless. In front of them was their king, with the mantis clutched in his arms on the bed, there was no denying that the situation was at least suspicious. But he was the king, no one could tell him anything or ask for explanations for his actions.

Ogrim had a lost look and a pale face, through his mind furrowed all kinds of dark thoughts, the reputation of the king would be stained, they would begin to run all kinds of dirty and malicious rumors about his beloved ruler. Big on the other hand did not know anything, his absolute ignorance about the decorum and male-female relationships prevented him from noticing the problem. That's why with his characteristic soft and calm voice he said.

"Ogrim, I think this young lady is sick, please call a doctor."

It took a few seconds for the beetle to react. How could he stay so calm in such a situation? Although... He already knew him, Big tended to worry first about people's health and then about other things. He sighed trying to calm down and then noticed the murmur of the servants who seemed to be having a conversation between them. They had already begun to invent dirty rumors about their king!

"You go to work!" The beetle shouted furiously.

The two insects bowed nervously and quickly slipped away to continue their work. Ogrim watched them go away with a severe expression, until suddenly a chill ran down his spine, when he turned around he noticed that the king was watching him in anger.

"Ogrim, you have no right to take my authority and I do not accept that you treat servitude in those ways."

"I'm sorry, my king." The beetle immediately knelt before him and lowered his head in shame. "I promise it won't happen again"

Orchid's eyes widened in surprise upon hearing that of the king. Was this insect the king? Still something dizzy she sat on the bed and began to analyze him. With just a glance she could say that he was a powerful individual, not only because of his enormous size, his presence was imposing.

So this was the king of Hallownest Heart. From what she saw, the inhabitants of this kingdom had chosen a fairly worthy king, at least one not as shameful as the Deep Nest spider. Despite the power that he gave off, Orchid noticed that he had a soft and kind personality, he could be firm when required, but in essence he was not dominant, perhaps because of this, although he was attractive, it did not give her the same sensations as Hollow.

However there was something that intrigued her. From what she could see, this individual seemed to belong to the same species as Hollow and the creatures she had known the day before. But unlike them, this individual could speak... At least to an audible volume, would it be due to his larger size?

"Get up, Ogrim, don't apologize anymore, just go and follow the order I gave you" The monarch resumed the word."

"My Majesty... Excuse my impertinence but the mantis is not really sick, she just lost a lot of blood the day before and now she is something weak.

"Is that true?" He turned to the creature. "What happened to you?"

The question took Orchid by surprise, supposedly she was a prisoner and a criminal, they shouldn't treat her with such cordiality. She was considering what to say when a certain person entered the door of the room.

Hollow was quite worried about the mantis, after seeing what she had done the day before trying to kill herself, he feared she was going to try some madness like that again. So when he woke up, the first thing he did was go to the Orchid's room at full speed. He felt so much relief when he saw her alive that he almost missed the presence of his brother in the room.

"Hollow?" Big caught his attention.

Hollow put his eyes on him and immediately bowed in greeting. They had no problem in having an informal treatment between them, but when there were people outside the family nearby, they were very careful in the protocol.

"Stand up, Hollow, come closer and introduce me to this lady."

Ogrim tensed. He was sure that Hollow was going to tell him the story in his own way, softening her faults to prevent the mantis from receiving proper punishment.

"My king, there is something that must..."

"Silence Ogrim, let Hollow speak."

"(Thank you very much, majesty)." Hollow made another bow as thanks. "(Her name is Orchid and she is one of the mantis Lord)"

"I see, you have brought a really special lady."

"(Yes. But before talking about anything, I want to make it clear that she is under my protection and I'll take responsibility for taking care of her)"

"Oh... You're very serious with her."

"(That is why I request your permission to have her as a guest in the palace)"

"Hollow, Have you considered all the inconveniences of this?"

"(Yes I have. Ogrim has warned me. But I'm willing to take the risk, I cannot abandon her, it is what my heart tells me to do)"

"I understand." Big sighed in shock, his brother must be really in love. "Okay, I give you my approval"

"(Thank you majesty! I promise she won't cause problems)"

Hollow looked at Orchid kindly and extended a hand inviting her to take it. The mantis observed his limb somewhat doubtful. What would they have talked about? She could understand the words of the king, but these did not give many clues about the topic of conversation. But anyway, it seemed that things were favorable for her, at least they were not trying to kill her.

She sighed nervously and took the hand that was offered, immediately she felt butterflies fluttering in her stomach and trembling she stood up. It was not just her anemia that had her head in the clouds.

Both holding hands left the room at Ogrim's incredulous gaze and Big's warm smile. Once the door closed behind them, the dung beetle headed nervously towards the monarch.

"Majesty, I don't want to question your authority, but are you sure that pardoning that insect was the right decision?"

"Pardon? Did she commit any crime?" He tilted his head in confusion.

"I knew, Hollow didn't tell you the whole story."

"What is the whole story?"

"That mantis was caught hunting illegally in Clara's territories,. In fact it was Hollow himself who stopped her and caused her one of the wounds that bled her"

"Oh no! And why did he omit that information?"

"He feels sorry for the mantis because she was rejected by her family"

"That's very sad" Big's eyes looked like they were about to shed tears.

"Majesty, don't sympathize with her! She committed a fault and not because a couple of misfortunes happened to her, she can remain unpunished, that is unfair. And that is what I have tried to make Hollow understand. In addition, her presence in Green Lands was very suspicious. The mantis never leave their territory"

"Love often blinds people. I'll talk to Hollow."

"Love? What are you talking about?"

"They are in love. Right?"

"What? Where did you get that from?"

"The cook chief and her assistant were talking about it today at breakfast. They said they saw Hollow arrive along with a mantis and that she was wearing his cloak. They also said that they were dating and that he had brought her for me to approve their relationship"

"WHAT?! NO! That is not so. It are gossip invented by the servitude" Ogrim put his hands to his face "You has just forgiven a criminal"

"How much did she manage to hunt?"

"Nothing really. We managed to stop her before she did anything"

"Mmmm... Strictly speaking, then her fault is not so serious. And I can no longer recant having forgiven her. Better leave the things like that and keep an eye on her. I suppose we will be able to handle a solitary mantis"

"She's quite strong, but I suppose Shadow and Myla can cope, even Sol could control her. The other knights still need training and I don't think they are appropriate rivals for that mantis"

"Well, I charge you with this matter. I will go to my office" He stood up and went to the door, but before leaving he looked at Ogrim once more and gave him one last order "Ah yes! Ogrim, please ask the maids to clean the room, there is a strange smell here" Said this, he gone.

Ogrim blinked something confused. Strange smell? He felt nothing, although in reality most of the scents he ignored because it were often drowned by his own personal smell.

He sniffed the air looking for that scent that had disgusted the king and when he felt it, a chill ran down his back...

Pheromones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Myla mentioned here is not the same as the game. She is a vessel that was named by Hollow and she appears in Hallownest Tales.
> 
> You can't imagine how much it cost me to write the chapter, I'm in a terrible lack of inspiration, I don't even really want to draw. Good thing I did not set dates or goals for publication or I would be very stressed. Well, I hope that the next chapter is better, because I didn't like this much.


	8. Contempt

New rumors roamed the halls of the White Palace and threatened to spread beyond its impolite walls. It spoke about love triangles, jealousy and a cruel dispute between two brothers fighting for the love of a deadly mantis. Despite the efforts made by Ogrim, there was no way to stop these talk, soon this scandal would reach the press.

Fortunately for the old dung beetle, nobody blamed his king for what was happening, the most affected in this situation was Orchid. Big was a beloved and feared monarch, whom everybody knew well, who had had an impeccable behavior and never had a known mate.

Instead, the mantis was a newcomer that nobody knew anything about, who belonged to a race with which the kingdom had been enmity since ancient times and who made no effort to get along with others. It was obvious that the blame would fall on her. As for Hollow, he was only seen as a poor victim of this insect, after all he had been fooled several times before by his tendency to blindly trust others and always think the best of all. It was usual in him to get into some problems.

These gossip were reinforced by the attitudes both took. While Big was prudent and distant with Orchid, Hollow continued to act in a loving and friendly way with her, in fact he was the only one in the whole castle who did not look at her with contempt. Even the other vessels did not want to approach her influenced by the act from the other insects. It was because of this that the mantis felt increasingly depressed and frustrated, perhaps she was not in a dungeon, but she felt as if she were in one.

Now Orchid was in the baths of the castle lamenting her sad existence. She was supposed to be a guest, but she felt like a prisoner, one locked in a gold cage, with her body weakened and considered the worst scum in the kingdom. How much more would she fall? How much more humiliation would she be forced to endure? Was this the punishment she received for having those thoughts forbidden by an insect that was not a mantis?

Worst of all was that her condition would only get worse. She had chosen the worst time of the year to leave the Fungal Wastes, she was about to go into heat. Soon she would expels pheromones constantly and uncontrollably attracting all compatible males from the surroundings. Normally females who did not want to leave offspring were confined together in a place conditioned for that, where they rested away from the presence of males and had their methods to face this cycle in the most favorable way. But now she was alone in an unknown place, What was going she do?

She was very tempted to escape, but she had no way of doing it, she didn't know the palace well and nobody seemed interested in helping her, and after almost being killed by a saw that mysteriously came out of nowhere, she stopped trying to flee.

She sighed and plunged one last time into the warm water pond where she was resting. Never in her life did she dream that she could enjoy such luxuries. These bathrooms were wonderful, everything there was, the food, the beds, the gardens. However, she would gladly change all that in order to return home. She was tired of being undervalued and especially of having no one to talk to.

Hollow was the only one who paid attention to her but it wasn't as if she could communicate freely with him. Besides he had his own knight responsibilities and couldn't be with her all day. In fact he seemed busier than he should. She had the impression that they were giving him more work on purpose to keep him away from her.

Orchid in the midst of her despair and loneliness had begun to speak to the statues of the Lord of the Shades. She was not particularly religious, but if this famous god they praised really existed, at least he would listen to her, and feeling someone did so gave her a minimum of comfort. Of course, she didn't expect her wishes to come true or he help her, she just wanted to let off steam.

She left the water, finishing her bath and walked towards the exit of the showers. Then set her sights on an image of the dark god that was there, one of the many that populated the white castle.

"You know... This place is crap." Again she had another one of her relapses where she sought to communicate with the inanimate object. "I'm fed up, I can't stand this contempt anymore... They all ignore me as if I were going to rip their heads off... Being honest, I would like to, but... I feel so lonely that I would even appreciate the company of a weak insect... I need a friend... Someone to talk to... Someone who doesn't just look at me silently with compassion... Is it that I don't even deserve that?"

Orchid then knelt before the statue and lowered her head regretfully.

"I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry! I'm sorry for desire him! I tried to avoid it, but... It's hard. I admit it! I want him! I want to have him on me! I want him to hug me and make me his! I'm a dirty creature that has given herself to sin! But... I want to redeem myself... I will try harder... I will take him away from my mind and my life. I will reject Hollow and not think about him anymore! I... I just want everything to be the same as before, I want to return to my tribe... I want to be respected and appreciated again..."

Orchid allowed herself a few minutes of self-pity before she stood up and resumed her proud and distant attitude. Her pride was all she had left, she was not going to allow her to be seen vulnerable and needy. First dead!

She left the bathroom and headed towards the gardens, it was the only place where she felt more at ease, surrounded by greenery and hidden from the aggressive looks of the castle's inhabitants. Nor is it that she felt totally comfortable there, she got bored too much, but it was the best thing she had available. Besides, the knights in training used to have their sessions in that place, sometimes she could entertain herself observing their pathetic attempts to become stronger... Well, not everyone was so pathetic, some of them looked quite skilled and advanced very fast.

She walked down the hall silently, she didn't want to be noticed, but in that place it was impossible, there were no bushes in which to hide and the tile floor increased the sound of the footsteps in a scandalous way. Although she did not want to, she had to endure the looks of contempt of the females, and the expression of horror that the males put on seeing her before escaping.

Sigh. This was the fault of the pheromones, it were getting stronger and the males were increasingly attracted to her, so they escaped before being very wrapped in her scent. Even that old dung beetle no longer spoke directly to her and sent someone girl or some vessel to talk to her, until now Orchid had not realized that Hollow's race was immune to pheromones.

Her steps continued to resonate in the hall, but these were joined by other, softer and faster footsteps. Orchid frowned, this was not the first time that happened, for some days she felt observed, someone was watching her. She doubted they would hurt her, but it was annoying.

During the previous occasions she chose to ignore her mysterious watchman, but this time she was already fed up and on the verge of collapse. Lately she felt better physically, her endurance and speed was improving. No doubt the herbs that made her eat to replenish the blood were working. With part of her forces recovered, she felt she could ambush her stalker. That would be a good practice to get back into action, and if someone got hurt... She didn't really care anymore, by now she didn't care if she was dead.

She stopped abruptly and began to look around pretending to contemplate the decorations in the hallway and the potted plants. She approached one and began to rub one of its leaves as if she wanted to impregnate her claws with its smell. She heard the steps sneak up, she quieted her breathing, this must be quick and precise. She closed her eyes. When she opened them again she attacked.

The mantis ran out with her claws extended towards the mysterious presence, threw herself against they ready to scratch their face, but as soon as she saw the face of the bug the surprise and panic haunted her.

Eight eyes.

Eight eyes watched her with a dumbfounded expression. The Lord of the Shades? Had the statue responded to her prayers and now had materialized as a living being? She jumped back and knelt humbly as an apology, she never wanted to disrespect a god.

The insect remained kneeling for a while until she felt a soft touch on her shoulder, so she dared to open her eyes and look up. She found a white face that actually had eight eyes, but he was not the lord of the shades.

Orchid blinked somewhat confused, then paying more attention she realized that the individual in front was actually a vessel, a rather particular one. He had an eccentric air, highlighted by the clothes he wore. He wore an extremely long cloak with turtleneck, it almost covered his feet, it did not seem very practical. On his chest he wore a red jewel as a pin and on his back he carried the weirdest nail she had ever seen, it was too thin and had a ball almost on the tip. He was not a very robust individual and was somewhat shorter than Hollow, his face had eight eyes and a pair of horns that curved backwards, in addition there were some gray spots on his head. Could it be the marks and scars of some disease?

The vessel gave her a kind look and pulled a white board and pencil out of his clothes. This board was quite special, you could write and erase on it as many times as you wanted without ever spending the pencil, it was one of Big's inventions. He, like his father, was very fond of inventing things, he didn't have the genius of the old worm, but occasionally he came out with something useful.

The vessel bowed in greeting and wrote on his board.

"Hello, my name is Soul, nice to meet you"

Orchid was increasingly surprised. Was someone interested in talking to her? Maybe he was an envoy of the Lord of Shades. She had just desperately asked for some company and this was what she received, of course, not in the way she expected, it seemed somewhat uncomfortable to have to communicate with someone who could only write, but It was better than nothing.

"Nice to meet you, Soul, my name is Orchid."

"Is it true that you are a mantis? I had never seen one"

"Yes, I am a mantis, a proud member of the tribe that inhabits fungal Wastes."

The vessel swayed changing the weight from foot to foot. He looked very excited, he took his board again thinking about what else to say.

"What is the mantis tribe like?"

This question left Orchid quite surprised, apparently this individual was very interested in knowing more about her people and her culture. For her part, she had no problem answering, at least that was more interesting than watching the grass grow.

She began telling him about her society, the rules that governed them, her wild customs and her hierarchy system based on strength and power. Soul listened attentively, occasionally writing an occasional question on his board. That conversation was very comforting for Orchid, to be able remember her land and her people in addition to the life she had left behind put her in a very good mood. She also felt proud to share a little of her way of life, which to her eyes was the ideal. Because of that was so unpleasant to read that sentence on the board of the vessel.

"Life in your tribe seems very sad, no wonder you have escaped"

Orchid felt her blood boil with rage. How could he say that? Sad life? That was the right way to live! Strength was what should prevail! Besides, she hadn't run away like a coward and at some point she was going back!

"Remove that shit from your slate insolent creature!" She hissed. Soul immediately stood guard, the tone of her voice was not friendly at all, yet he dared to give her a questioning look, which given the context was easy to interpret "I didn't escape from my tribe! I am not a weak coward who would do something like that! I'm not so pathetic as to do that!"

"I never hinted that you were a weak or a coward, I just thought you were gone because you didn't feel comfortable there" He hurried to write on his board.

"Not feeling comfortable? This damn castle is where I don't feel at comfortable!" This time she decided to abandon the dialogue and throw her claws against Soul, who in one jump dodged her movement "Do you think this luxuries can hide your vile hearts? Do you think your good food is enough to redeem your cruelty to me? I hate this place! And I hate you all!"

Soul did not feel that what he had said was so offensive, but he supposed that this was just a cluster of repressed emotions that had finally exploded, unfortunately in the worst way.

Of course, he was not going to let him be damaged without fighting, and although he was not a knight (Basically he was rejected for lack of discipline) he was one of the most powerful vessels there was.

He put away his slate and drew his nail and immediately began to imbue it in his soul. Soul was a sorcerer, although he knew how to handle the nail well, he had specialized his combat in the use of magic, he even modified his weapon for this purpose.

Orchid launched into the attack, her instincts burned, she needed to hunt, fight, put her muscles into operation, she was like a volcano exploding, threatening to calcine everything with its lava.

At first Soul had difficulty dodging the rapid movements of the mantis, her speed was such that at times he lost sight of her, it was almost as if she disappeared, only to appear behind him and attack with her claws. Luckily for the vessel, Orchid had been fighting with a spear for so long that she had lost some practice using her claws, but she still managed to scratch him lightly.

Orchid's unleashed fury gradually subsided, but not her desire to fight. It was something she needed, she had been resting for too long and she could finally let out all the contained energy. She continued to attack Soul, but no longer with the murderous anxieties of before. The slight change of attitude was noticed by the vessel, who kept fighting more to please her than for anything else. He wanted to amend the offense in some way. So little by little, it became a more friendly combat, although in the eyes of others it did not seem so.

In the middle of their fight they had begun to break some pots and ornaments that were in place, in addition to leaving marks and scratches on the perfect white walls of the palace. But along with the destruction, they were also causing a lot of noise, which attracted some servants to the site. They looked horrified at the mantis attacking poor Soul. So they immediately went to get help, they needed to stop that fight before the poor bug got hurt.

Both fighters were very engaged in battle, however Orchid was beginning to weaken. She cursed her wounded body that still could not recover from it's previous accident and almost insulted her opponent to see the look of pity he dedicated to her. Why! She was a mantis Lord, one of the most powerful insects of her tribe. Perhaps even from Hallownest! Against the only one she had lost was Hollow. She couldn't bear to have someone else defeat her.

She tried to hide her agitated breathing and maintain a calm attitude, perhaps if she put all her might in her next attack she could defeat that insolent individual, she wish she had her spear. The mantis bowed and ran towards Soul. The vessel opened his eight eyes in terror, this increased the confidence of the mantis who believed she had intimidated his enemy, but it was not for her that fear surfaced on his face.

Orchid suddenly felt a horrible blow, an impact so strong that it threw her and smashed her into a wall. She was inert a few seconds before she dared to open her eyes and move a little, but as soon as she did another blow threw her a little further. There were gasps of surprise and murmurs echoing, they were not alone, surely those gossipy bugs were getting into what they didn't care about.

"Enough! That is enough," said a female voice. "You are going to kill her"

"I don't want to witness a murder" said another.

"Hollow is going to get mad if you hurt her" said a third.

The fallen insect vaguely opened her eyes, at first with her blurry sight she managed to distinguish a vessel that looked at her with hate, while another pulled his cloak trying to get his attention. The vessel who was pulling the cape was Soul, he was probably trying to defend her, but the one who had his eyes fixed on her was a stranger.

He was a tall and strong-looking individual, wearing a black cloak, in his head he bore six horns, three on each side, it were short and pointed upwards.

The mantis this time decided to remain inert on the floor and not move a muscle, the two previous attacks had already made her quite clear the power of the individual in front, which sincerely worried her. Even in that vulnerable state, she allowed himself to think of something that was not her own survival.

Until now Orchid believed to be the strongest, -at least she was in her tribe- and since she ascended to Lord, she had only been defeated by Hollow. But here she had another individual with the ability to defeat her. It was true that she was weakened by anemia, but she always boasted of estimating the strength of her rivals very accurately and this guy had a terrifying power. That meant that Hollow was not the only strong individual in this kingdom. But thinking about King Big, he also looked very powerful, although his soft character concealed this fact a little. Would there be more knights like that?

This was horrible. The Hallownest Heart had enough military power to crush the mantis. If they want to, they could take over their territory and enslave them with total freedom. So long living in ignorance, assuming they could overcome anything, but the cruel reality was that they were pathetic.

She should return to the tribe immediately and alert them to this, they should... What could they really do? How could they become stronger? At least enough to defend against an attack. Now she was beginning to realize that living in isolation was perhaps not a good idea, they stalled, the world advanced and they stayed behind.

But now she couldn't do anything for her people, not even let them know their own weakness. She looked at her attacker in terror, more for her people than for herself. She cursed her destiny once more and closed her eyes waiting for the end of her life. However, what she felt was not the iron burying in her being, it was rather the sound of two weapons colliding with each other. She opened her eyes again and met Hollow's back, wearing his imposing figure, she couldn't help but blush at that sight.

At that moment the 6-horned individual and Hollow began to engage in a silent conversation, which did not seem very friendly. Both looked extremely angry and gestured with aggressive movements, from time to time the eight-eyed vessel intervened participating in the same soundproof communication. Finally after a while, the guy who had attacked Orchid crossed his arms and gave her a look of contempt, then walked away while he seemed to be muttering curses. But before he left, he grabbed Soul by the cloak and dragged him with him somewhere. Soul began to wave his arms with a look of panic. Orchid had no way of knowing, but the young bug was in trouble.

Once both contenders moved away, Hollow turned his attention to Orchid and gave her one of those looks that so moved the mantis.

Hollow's sweetness was something she wasn't used to, delicacy and affection was a rare thing in the mantis tribe. A hug, an affectionate farewell or a simple look of love and compassion like the one the knight was now devoting to her felt strange and unreal. The worst part is that she wanted these samples of love more and more. The mantis did not fully understand it, but it was not something that seemed to be related to her reproductive needs, it was not something that stimulated her body, it was more like warm her heart.

The knight offered her a hand to help her stand up. It was a simple and kind gesture, with no hidden meaning, but it still planted anguish in the heart of the mantis. Her attraction to Hollow reached levels difficult to tolerate, however she had promised herself, she would turn her mind away from him, she should reject him, her desires were dirty and undesirable, she could not fall into temptation. For all this, she pushed Hollow away and swung to her feet.

Hollow looked dumbfounded at the aggressive rejection of the insect and gave her an expression of confusion.

"Get out of me! I don't want you to touch me! I don't want you to look at me or get close to me! I want you far from my life!"

And after shouting this she staggered away to lock herself in her bedroom, leaving the knight with a sense of sorrow and bewilderment.

...........

In Deepnest a spider climbed the platforms of the Distant Village, making her way to the highest house where the queen of the place had her den. As every day Ania was going to look for the morning newspaper at the stagstation. Hornet liked to read the news very early and be informed, so as her personal servant, she had a duty to take it with her.

Ania was in a very good mood, finally Hornet's rest period was over and she was already allowed to go out and resume her usual work, that was a relief, she was tired of hearing her complaints about how bored she was.

She entered the den and headed to the kitchen where Quirrel prepared breakfast. Ania sighed, containing her frustration. She as Hornet's maid, cooking should be her job, but Hornet insisted she liked Quirrel's food more. It is not that he cooks was something bad, but her desire to serve and please her queen made her something possessive in her labors, besides, that pill bug did not convince her at all as her queen's consort.

Quirrel had nothing wrong, he was a very good person and Ania understood why Hornet loved him so much, but the fact that he was pill bug was a nuisance. They had had to enable some stairs to make it easier for him to climb up to his house and his lack of physical strength made some chores hard for him, so he had to be helped. At least he had the decency to learn to weave. However, what she hated most about him was that because of him, Hornet lived worried about the species to which her offspring would belong. Why did it have to be this way? She was going to be a mother, she should be happy and excited, not worried and stressed.

"You're back, come sit down, breakfast is ready," said the pill bug serving the spider's breakfast.

In Deepnest the social differences were not very marked as in Hallownest Heart, here there was no opulence or palaces or ostentation, although the hierarchy and obedience were very marked, masters and servants allowed themselves to live somewhat narrower.

For all this, it was common for Ania to eat with her queen and she could also taste Quirrel's food, and for this reason she understood Hornet's insistence that he cook. This wretch did it too well.

"Hornet, dear, you hardly ate a bite," observed the pill bug."

"I'm not very hungry"

"Oh Hornet," he sighed angrily. "This is because of that idea you have that you gained weight after your break, right?"

"Cof cof." She tried to hide her blush behind the newspaper that took from Ania. "I don't know what are you talking about"

"I already told you that you are the same as always."

"I don't feel the same as always, I'm slower."

"That's just lack of exercise. Why don't you challenge Sharpy to a duel one of these days? Sure it will suit you"

"I don't have time, I'm very busy, being queen is not easy. I have many meetings to hold. After my absence I fear that chaos has taken over the kingdom"

"Everything is fine, my queen, even from your rest you were supervising everything very efficiently," said Ania in a mellow tone.

"Yes Hornet, take it easy. Read the newspaper, everything is fine, no disaster has happened while you took your rest"

"Mmmm… Yes, if something had happened, it would be in the news" she began to review the different pages of the newspaper "Oh, from what I see Big made a work plan to reduce crime in The City of Tears. I hope his idea have results. Sometimes I feel he is somewhat careless with his plans"

"Well, sometimes he has his flaws but things more or less work well" Quirrel said. "And on the other hand, remember that Hallownest Heart is very different from Deepnest, the measures to be taken for each kingdom are therefore different"

"Yes, I suppose you're right..." She turned the page. "Let's see what else there is."

While Hornet was reading the entertainment section, Quirrel continued to eat his food, occasionally exchanging some words with Ania. That breakfast seemed to pass with total calm and normality, but the peace was soon broken by the sound of pottery crashing. Ania and Quirrel turned to see and found Hornet with the newspaper gripped so tightly that it seemed she would break it at any moment. In her gaze there was such fury that they both shrunk in their places.

"Hey... Hornet... Did something happen?" Quirrel asked worriedly.

"Hollow... He is in the newspaper..."

"Again? What did he do now? Did they again make up an affair with the older prostitute of the pleasure house?" Quirrel suggested

"No"

"Did they cheat him again to act as bodyguards for bandits?" Ania tried

"No"

"Again he ended up working in a restaurant to pay for the damage of a fight?" Quirrel tried to guess once more.

"And that when was it?"

"Eh... Oops..."

"Quirrel, what the hell have you been hiding from me?"

"Nothing." Quirrel's guilty expression was not very convincing. "But hey, what happened to Hollow now?" He tried to change the subject."

"You and I will talk privately later" the queen said with a look of disapproval, then returned her attention to the newspaper. "Listen to this. 'Love drama at the White Palace, King Big and his knight Hollow faced in a fraternal dispute over the love of a deadly mantis'. What the hell does this mean? Surely Hollow got into trouble again! I must go see him right now!"

"My-my Mrs. Hornet!" Ania exclaimed alarmed "I-I-I don't want to sound disrespectful but I don't consider it appropriate to intervene in the affairs of another kingdom"

"IT are not affairs of another kingdom! IT are family matters! They are my brothers, it is my duty to ensure that they don't do stupid things" she leaned back and grabbed her head. "Although I would like them to stop causing me problems. For Wyrm! I will be a mother, I will soon have to worry about my own offspring, I cannot keep an eye on them all the time" She resumed a more regal stance. "Well, I finish breakfast and will pay them a visit"

"But Hornet, today you have a meeting with the patrol in the upper zone." Quirrel said.

"Then I'll do it tomorrow."

“You have to visit the area that was most affected by the giant centipede that attacked the other day.

"Then I'll go the next day"

"But Hornet" Quirrel looked afflicted, "we agreed that you and I would..."

"I already know it!" He hurried to answer with a red face. "I'll check my agenda to see when I can visit them" She leaned over the table and grabbed her head again. "Hollow... Why do you always have to get in so much troubles...."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the chapter was not as funny as always but my mood has not been the best, I have been going through some complicated situations and I can not help but it be noticeable when writing. 
> 
> I recently made a tumblr (I still don't understand how it works) to put the drawings of the characters there (I don't want to fill my deviantart with only HK drawings), in case someone wants to see my monsters you can find me as "i-ver-cosas "(Have I told you that I am bad choosing names?), By the way that the two vessels that appear in this chapter were created by my readers on wattpad, there will be several of them (Wow, look how many parentheses in a single paragraph).
> 
> Thanks for reading, I hope you have a good day.


	9. Comfort

_Clover looked at her attackers defiantly, while holding her injured claw. The bugs had her cornered in a hiden place of the garden from which she had no escape, at least not in the conditions she was in._

_"Caught up," one of the critters in armor scoffed at her. "How does it feel to be in those conditions? How about being the weak element? Show your superior strength now mantis, see if you can against us"_

_Clover growled helplessly, obviously she had no way of beating them and they knew it. She was hurt, she had no armor and they were six talented warriors, from the beginning she never had a chance. She did not want problems, she knew that her stay in the castle was conditional, if she caused only one problem she would be expelled. Even if she was attacked she could not defend herself, because she was an enemy admitted only by Ze'mer's benevolence._

_"Please go and leave me alone, I don't want trouble" said the mantis._

_"Do you think you are in a position to demand something, damn mantis? Forget it!" Shouted the knight. "You are an enemy of the king and you don't deserve consideration, now we will make sure to put yourself in your place, scum."_

_"What's happening here!" Shouted an authoritative voice._

_Both the knights and the mantis directed their eyes towards the origin of the voice and met Dryya and Ogrim who watched them severely._

_"Dryya!" Exclaimed the knight who appeared to be the leader, who immediately made a polite bow. "We found this mantis in a suspicious attitude hanging around the place"_

_"And that's why you beat her to this extreme?"_

_Clover looked very hurt, with numerous blows to her body and one of her claws was hurt. It did not look like the wounds of a fair fight, rather they were the sign of a brutal act of abuse of power._

_"But she..."_

_"There is no honor in the defeat of a weakened enemy, this girl has not even had the opportunity to defend herself, and yet you have raised your weapons against her. You should be ashamed! you call yourselves Knights of Hallownest? Get out of here! Get out of my sight!"_

_The warriors lowered their faces in shame and withdrew from the room without saying anything. Dryya only watched them move away before directing her gaze to the mantis who seemed extremely grateful for her intervention, even she began to approach her, perhaps to dedicate a few words._

_"Keep out of my way, mantis," the knight said dryly, walking away without even deigning to look at her._

_Clover looked down, she felt frustrated and with a growing anger inside her. She hadn't done anything wrong, she had just gone for a walk, it wasn't fair to be treated that way, her attackers hadn't even received punishment. The worst they also treated her with contempt, as if it was all her fault._

_Ogrim seeing the insect so affected, wanted to go to her to try to cheer her up with some words, but as soon as the girl saw him she turned her back indignantly._

_"Stay away from me beetle." And she staggered toward her chambers ..._

  
...................................

"Perhaps Ze'mer supported and took care of Clover, but for the others, she was only an enemy of the king, nobody liked her, because of that she became aggressive and distrustful. Any bug would act that way in a situation like that Hollow" said Ogrim calmly. "Don't take it personally, you didn't do anything to she hates you. Just leave her alone until she recovers and then let her go"

Hollow, Ogrim and Big were at a very elegant table set in the palace gardens taking a break while discussing the matter of the illustrious guest they had housed in the castle.

"(But she was rejected by her family)" he explained with signs trying to get Ogrim to understand "(What will happen to her if I let her go? She will be alone, she won't have anyone to support her)"

"Hollow is worried this mantis is left alone and helpless," Big said, seeing that Ogrim was having a hard time interpreting his brother.

"Oh, really? Hollow, don't worry about her so much, she's an adult, she can manage herself alone. Also, remember that not all bugs are so dependent on communities or families, some prefer to take lonelier lives"

"(She was not lonely, she had a family and a tribe she belonged to)" Hollow looked down sadly, giving Ogrim a pretty clear idea of his feelings.

"I assume you intend to be the replacement of the family she lost, but I doubt that is possible. She is a mantis, her culture and ours is very different, we could not reach an understanding, you cannot understand how she feels and you cannot explain your point of view of things. Please, you can't even speak in one way she can understand you"

"(But you more or less you understand me Ogrim)"

"But that's because Ogrim wants to understand you," Big replied this time. "If she has her mind closed to you, you won't be able to enter in it, no matter how hard you try. When people don't want to open up to others they are an impenetrable wall. You can offer her the best in the world, but if she is not willing to receive it, it is useless. Actually I agree with Ogrim, let her recover and then take her back to her home, you can't do more for her"

Hollow shook hands. Even his brother agreed that he should let Orchid go, but he couldn't help worrying about her, seeing her try to end her own life had affected him too much and he was terrified that she was going to try something like that again. He couldn't imagine the poor creature's degree of despair to do something like that.

"(I ... I promised to take care of her)"

"I don't think you're doing a very good job, Hollow," Big replied sharply.

Hollow knocked on the table and stood angrily, looked at his brother and king with fury and without saying anything else he turned towards the bedrooms.

"My lord," Ogrim looked worried.

"Leave him Ogrim. When he meditates a little on the situation, he will realize that it is the best. To tell you the truth, I don't have anything against that mantis and I have no problem with her staying with us, but her discontent is more than obvious here, sometimes letting go is the best"

"You are right, with any luck, this problem may soon be solved and we will no longer have to worry about it"

Suddenly something caught their attention, a vessel with three horns, two pointing towards the sky and one that curved in front of him came running. He looked very agitated, his little violet cape wiggled at every step he took and the expression on his face implied that something was wrong.

"What's up Izuri?" Asked Ogrim, worried.

"(Hornet is entering the palace!)"

"My king could you..."

"He says Hornet is entering the palace. It seems that my sister has decided to visit us without announcing, typical of her" he said with impressive tranquility.

"Hornet ?!" Ogrim did seem alarmed by this news. "If she knows that we have a mantis lodged here she will kill us! Especially since she is a mantis Lord"

"Why?" BIg didn't seem to understand the problem. "Hornet has a mantis friend in the City of Tears"

"She isan exiled mantis, it's like she is not part of the tribe, but this one is different. She is a leader! Besides, You didn't know about the battle she had with the Lords a few weeks ago? I don't think it's funny to meet your enemy"

"Yes... I'm sure he'll be in a bad mood." The monarch turned to Izuri who was waiting for instructions. "Could you tell the cook to make some egg snacks? Sure that calms her a bit"

The vessel nodded and ran out to fulfill the order received.

"My king, do you think some egg snacks will be enough to calm the red beast?"

"You're right," Ogrim sighed, relieved to have his king's understanding, "I'll order to prepare a Dirtcarver steak, it's best to make sure."

"Majesty!"

Ogrim looked exasperated, but Big just looked at him with a funny expression. Sometimes Big's actions confused the old beetle a little, as he gave the impression that some matters were not taken seriously, but somehow things used to turn out well under his instructions. This vessel seemed to have inherited the wisdom of the Pale King , or perhaps it would be the fact of having been raised by him. But whatever it was, he had nothing left but to trust his judgment.

Oblivious to his sister's presence and Ogrim's dilemmas, Hollow walked through the halls to the Orchid room. He carried Soul's board with him because he had borrowed it, so he could communicate with her. They were going to have a serious conversation, if there was something she was not happy about then they would treat it, but he could no longer bear that she was rejecting him and refused to open the door of her room. He was genuinely worried about her and feared that she would commit some stupidity locked in that room. Therefore, turnkey, he prepared to force his entry into the lady's quarters.

As always, Hollow acted without consulting anyone and obviously that it would lead to complicated new situations. Although in a way it wasn't all his fault, so far no one had yet explained to him what a heat was, no one saw it as necessary considering that he didn't have the ability to father children. If he had known, he definitely wouldn't have gone to bother her, much less enter without asking permission to her room.

The knight carefully inserted the key into the lock and without difficulty opened the door. As soon as he set foot in the room a strange sweet smell enveloped him. He remembered having perceived that aroma sometime in life, but he could not relate it to anything in particular. Those were the fermonoas, obviously Hollow because of his nature as a vessel and his lack of reproductive capacity was immune to its influence, otherwise he would have shown an avid desire to approach the insect.

Orchid on the other hand, was not very well. She was in full heat, and therefore she had desires that could not be satisfied, because of this she had become very aggressive and moody. She longed for a fight with which to vent her frustrations, every time they knocked on the door she wanted to beat who was behind, but out of consideration, she just received the food and let her shy visitor continue their walked without disturbing them. However, this time nobody knocked on the door, they simply opened without consulting.

That was a minor fault, but the mantis was so irascible that she decided to punish it. Regardless of the consequences of attacking a resident of the palace, she pounced on her visitor, waving her claws, not with murderous intentions, but with the desire to hurt. But Hollow was not a common opponent, even in the quietest situations he always carried his nail, he never took it off from him and he lived in a constant state of alert, already by habit. Even if the mantis was fast and unpredictable, he was able to respond to her attack effectively.

Orchid launched a blow but Hollow blocked it with his nail, then responding instinctively pushed forward and counterattacked. The mantis managed to avoid the blow and backed away, but she did not take into account the smallness of her battlefield, so she ended up stumbling on the bed and falling on her back on it.

The knight relentlessly and accustomed to finishing his battles jumped on her and ended up immobilizing her under him, with one hand holding each claw and with his own weight on the body of the insect. Having all her movements restricted, it could be said that the battle had ended with Orchid being defeated once more.

Hollow mentally scolded himself for acting that way, it was a mere impulse that always forced him to react relentlessly to his enemies, but now that was not his idea, he wanted to communicate with Orchid, talk to her to try to understand her, and instead he had ended up crushing her with his power. He sighed annoyed and watched the mantis wanting to apologize to her, but as always she turned out to be strange and ambiguous.

Orchid was torn between her desires and her decency, he had the male she wanted on top of her, dominating her, her forces were simply not enough to free herself from his grip and as always, inexplicably this fascinated her. An unbearable heat dominated her body while hundreds of fantasies populated her mind. She wanted he to take her there at that moment, without asking anything, to be abrupt, to show her his power, to crush her and not allow her to put the slightest resistance.

She was so excited that her tail moved alone, seeking to rub against Hollow's body, as she writhed helplessly in her grip. And it was precisely this attitude that had Hollow confused.

Orchid struggled and resisted with all her might to his grip, but her face did not express precisely discontent, nor was it happiness, that was an indescribable expression for him. Was it his condition as a vessel that made it difficult for him to understand? As far as he remembered, in his time studying and learning about emotions he never saw anything like that.

Then he felt the brush of the mantis tail against his bottom. A shiver ran through his body and he focused his attention to that part. The tail kept moving rhythmically and steadily, that was strange, but there was something even more strange, a certain part of it looked wet. Moved by curiosity, he took one of his hands to the area where he found that it was indeed wet. Where would that liquid have come from?

Meanwhile Orchid did not know what to do. When Hollow used one of his hands to explore his lower zone, he left her free enough to free herself. Originally those were her intentions, but when she felt the knight's touch on her intimate area she was no longer able to do anything. An electric current pierced her being, and she shuddered at his touch. That was another way of having her dominated, she didn't want to stop feeling that, it was too intense, the pleasure enveloped her and it was almost difficult to breathe. Was she really so excited for those superficial touches to have her like that? She couldn't contain a sigh and a muffled groan that immediately caught Hollow's attention

Within his ignorance and innocence, the knight sensed a positive reaction from the mantis to his touch. Her gasps and her yearning gaze made him understand. He decided to continue his caresses, Orchid seemed calm and happy with them, anyway it made sense, when he was little, his sister used to caress him on the head when he was nervous or depressed and he felt better, maybe what the mantis needed was a simple show of affection. Although he did not understand why she liked to be caressed in the tail.

Hollow continued to give his attention to the female and extracting moans of pleasure, and it was in that situation that Hornet found them.

At the beginning the spider did not know how to react, that was a situation in which she never expected to find her brother in her life. If Hollow had been a normal insect, she would have retired discreetly without disturbing but... Most likely, he didn't have the slightest idea of what he was doing and she wasn't sure he understood the situation correctly.

Hollow's keen instincts made him realize her sister's presence even though she hadn't said anything. So he interrupted her touch to greet her carefree mind. This confirmed to Hornet that Hollow definitely had no idea of anything.

The cessation of Hollow's touch caused Orchid to return to her senses and dare to get up a little from her place, now Hollow had released her completely and was standing nest the bed watching something at the door of the room. The mantis was tense at the idea that someone had seen them in that unseemly act and their horror was tremendous when she realized that it had been, but the most horrible thing was the identity of their spectator, the spider queen.

Unfortunately Orchid did not have a polished social behavior, in the wild lands of the mantis everything was fixed by force and she acted in the only way she knew how to do it, with violence. Due to her experience in the previous confrontation she had with Hornet, Orchid underestimated the power of the queen. She never realized that she was not fighting at full capacity and supposed that knocking her out would be simple. Serious mistake.

The mantis using her overwhelming speed attacked the spider, but she using her acrobatic ability dodged and jumped away. Orchid jumped to perform an air offensive, however she was surprised by a rather unusual counterattack.

"Endiro!"

Hornet's thread came alive and began to dance emitting a golden glow. Its touch was burning and hurt the contact, that's why the walls of the room ended with burn marks and furniture with small cuts.

The mantis backed away in pain trying to get away from Hornet's spell, but she was relentless and didn't plan to give her a truce. The spider jumped on Orchid and hit her with a force she would never have expected. Was this really the same pathetic spider she had faced? She had to contain a cry of pain, and as she struggled to recover from the impact, her limbs were quickly tied by a strand of silk. By the time she realized, she was tied hands and feet on the floor absolutely helpless.

"Well, I hope you calmed down with that," said the crossbreed angrily. "I understand you will be angry at my intervention in... Your personal affair "a slight blush covered her face at the thought of what she had seen "But that is no reason to attack me that way! Seriously, someone could have been hurt"

Orchid looked at her somewhat surprised, it seemed strange to her she speak in such an informal tone.

"Uff... From what I see part of the rumors that the press has been publishing were true." She grabbed her head in exasperation. "Hollow, explain to me now what the hell you've gotten into. And why did you have to involve Big in your things? What have I told you about acting with decorum and wisdom!"

"(I have not gotten into any problem and I have acted with decorum and wisdom. Now I was just helping Orchid feel a little calmer)"

"Orchid?" She looked at the mantis with curiosity. "Wow, you have the same name as one of the Lords mantis."

At that moment, the aforementioned realized that Hornet had not recognized her, probably because she was not wearing her crown and her royal cloak, in part that relieved her a little, it would be extremely embarrassing if she found out about her true identity. If Hornet discovered it, she would kill herself at that moment by shame.

"And where did you get this girl, Hollow?"

\- "(I found her on Green Path, and she really is...)"

Orchid guessing that Hollow was going to betray her identity, still tied she crawled and used her legs to tear down the knight interrupting his explanation, then making a great effort, she threw himself on him and crushed him. Obviously it did not harm him much but it served to interrupt his explanation.

"Don't say anything!" She screamed desperately.

"(What the hell is wrong with you?)"

"Don't say anything!" Orchid thrust herself with her arms and bit one of Hollow's horns.

"(Let me go!) "The knight was waving carefully trying not to get his mask off by accident, while Hornet watched them silently with an expressionless face.

"From what I see you get along great." She sighed and shook her head. This pair acted like children fighting, it didn't surprise her that they were together. But she knew very well that all this could end extremely badly and she should do everything possible to avoid it. "Release him Orchid, Hollow says he won't say anything... Whatever you don't want he to say"

This statement seemed to calm the mantis, who stopped biting the knight's horn and rolled away from him.

The mantis cursed the spider inside, being tied and crawling like a worm was a new form of humiliation. She was also completely vulnerable, she was incapable of defending her self in any way possible, anyone could do what they wanted with her, even... Hollow. The mantis felt her face redden at the thought. Tied up and ready for him... He loved to think about that.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Hornet looked at her, surprised that she suddenly turned red and began to rub her face against the carpet.

"(She's always that weird, I don't even understand her but she's funny)" Hornet gave him a glacial look "(What?)"

"You and I are going to have a very serious conversation. You are going to explain to me what this means" She took out the newspaper where they talked about his supposed relationship with the deadly mantis and the love triangle in which he was involved with his brother.

The vessel took the newspaper awith curiosity nd began to read the news calmly. Orchid seemed to see the image of a mantis in the article that Hornet exposed, so she crawled towards Hollow and sat down to try to read next to him, but after each word her fright increased, until finally it was so much her horror that she ended up expressing it openly.

"Kill me! Please kill Me! I can't stand this humiliation anymore!"

And after saying this, she began looking for a nail in Hollow's cloak to end her life. Obviously Hollow was not going to allow her to do such a thing and turned away from her, but the mantis was able to take the nail and make it fall to the ground. Desperate Orchid crawled to the weapon, the knight tried to stop her and caught her with his hands, the problem was that he grabbed her by the only place that was within his reach in that quick maneuver.

Orchid gave a rather suggestive groan when she felt his touch on her tail and Hornet burst into rage.

"Hollow lets go off that mantis now!" She shouted madly.

"(And now what did I do?)" Asked innocently recognizing the tone of anger of his sister.

"What did you do?! And you still dare to ask !? You can't grab a female by that side! But what the hell is wrong with you! You just don't have common sense!"

"(According to you I don't have)"

"Oh... Hornet..."

At that moment a trembling voice interrupted the queen's screams. Everyone present looked at the door of the room where they found Quirrel who looked a bit strange. His face was red, his posture was hesitant and he clung to the doorframe in despair as he swayed as if trying to contain something, also looked at Hornet pleadingly.

"Quirrel? What happens?" She seemed surprised to see her husband like that.

"Phe-pheromones...."

At that moment Hornet just noticed the situation and its severity. She had felt a sweet aroma when she entered the room but she did not pay attention to it, now she noticed what was happening. Orchid was in heat, It was obvious! That was the reproductive season of the mantis, in fact that was the reason why she had not wanted to postpone the meeting with the Lords mantis, if they held it a week later they would be in an aggressive and less cooperative state than usual, or they would be held away from the males along with other females.

Now she had this mantis expelling pheromones and filling the room with them, Quirrel had just entered and had been exposed, because of his way of acting he was probably compatible with Orchid and was suffering from the consequences of being it! She had to do something before the situation get out of control!

"Dear come with me!" She shouted as she ran to her husband and took his hand to take him away. But before leaving the room she dedicated her last words to her brother. "Now I must go to attend Quirrel but this is not over! You and I will talk later!"

And after that she slammed the door and left.

Hollow and Orchid were left alone in the room, he stood looking at the door without understanding anything, and she lay on the floor with her hands and feet tied. It was at that moment that she realized a certain fact that produced a strange mixture of relief and frustration. Until now she never spoke directly to the knight, but at that moment she was tempted to do so.

"You... You're immune to my pheromones, so... I guess we're not compatible" she said with a certain melancholy air.

Again she was overwhelmed by her contradictory feelings, she must be happy that this male did not feel the slightest attraction to her, but instead she was disappointed. As much as she hated to admit it, she wanted to like him, she wanted to be his. Surely that was the fault of the heat. If she were in normal conditions she would never think of something so dirty. Then she remembered the promise she had made to the Lord of Shades, she was going to forget about Hollow, she would take him out of her mind and leave that sick attraction she felt for him.

But it was enough to have him close to fall back into temptation.

At that moment she began to hate herself, again she was a sinner, again she had those dirty thoughts, and her desires led her to surrender herself to him, the simple fact of being bound and vulnerable should be something that would horrify her instead of excite her

Suddenly she felt an affectionate soft touch on her head, a comforting caress that sheltered her soul, then she saw that Hollow with his nail cut her bonds leaving her free.

"(Everything is fine, quiet)" he said wanting to cheer her up.

Orchid did not understand his message, but something in his gaze made her intuit his intentions. She held a sigh before the fire that invaded her belly, she couldn't help finding it beautiful, those sweet eyes that looked at her full of compassion moved her. She slowly sat down in her place and approached his face to Hollow's, who never looked away from her. Both held their breath impressed by the closeness they shared at that time, their eyes flashed curiosity and longing, as the first link established between two completely different worlds, without a word, that was the first time they really began to communicate.

But sadly the magic of that first event was interrupted in a crude and inelegant way.

"(Kiss now)" Izuri said looking at both bugs with dreamy eyes.

"(Why does Hollow have to stay with the pretty girls?)" Soul complained.

Hollow blushed with shame and immediately stood up agitated trying to explain by all means that nothing was happening there and they should forget what they had seen. His brothers tried to keep bothering him for a while longer, but his funny expressions soon changed into some of fear. At first the knight did not understand this behavior, but a chill ran down his back and he slowly turned to see.

Orchid was standing looking at them all with a furious expression. Then without previous threat she lifted one of her huge legs and kicked Hollow with such force that he was fired towards the door where he collided with his brothers and they all fell out of the room. Then still burning in rage the mantis walked towards the door and shouted at them.

"Out of here!" And she slammed.

The three vessels lying on the floor looked at each other with surprise, that female was very strong, it would be best not to make her angry.

Big walked slowly and proudly through the halls of the palace, he was very thoughtful, as if something worried him. In fact he seemed so engrossed that the bugs that saw him pass simply retreated silently so as not to disturb him, he was surely thinking about a very serious matter.

Actually, the matter that afflicted him was nothing serious, but he was extremely intrigued. Something like an hour ago, Hornet had urgently asked for a private room for her and Quirrel. The pill bug looked somewhat strange, he offered medical help in case he was sick, but the spider was very insistent in stating that his problem was something that she had to solve and no one but her.

Now seeking to clarify his doubts he was going to the Orchid's room. Apparently the problem had started when Quirrel went to that place. He also wanted to talk to the mantis, he no longer wanted to see his brother worried about her, he was willing to escort her out of the palace himself, if necessary, to solve the problem once and for all. Besides, apparently the mantis didn't want to be there either, it wasn't like he was going to expel her cruelly either.

When he reached the insect's room, he knocked on the door announcing that he was going to enter, more out of respect than for anything else, since he was used to entering where he wanted without permission. Because of it he was surprised by the response he received.

"Out of here! I don't want to see anybody!"

The voice that shouted this sounded broken, just as if it was crying desperately.

Big did not think twice, he forced his entry into the room and what he found inside broke his heart. The mantis was sitting on her bed with her eyes flooded with tears.

"I told you that..."

She was not able to complete the sentence, Big teleported to where she was and wrapped her in a warm hug. The mantis was speechless, for a moment she thought of fighting and attacking him, but her melodious voice deterred her from this.

"Calm, everything is fine, you don't need to worry about anything, just trust in me"

Trusting was something that went against her nature, or rather than what she had been taught. She could not do it, she should not do it but... At that moment her spirit was so broken that she gave up, she returned the hug and burst into tears.

The king allowed her to hold on to him and kept silent giving her space to let off steam. He didn't know what the problem was but he knew that was the best thing for her. He gently stroked the back of the mantis while waiting for her catharsis to end. At that moment, for the first time in many days, Orchid finally felt her spirit calm down, against all odds she found peace in the arms of her enemy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess many expected such a scene between Orchid and Hollow, curious fact, the Spanish version does not have that scene because ... Wattpad rules. Anyway you probably noticed that I am not explicit to write, I like it in that way, I hope it is fine for you.
> 
> Things are not right, but I feel better, so the chapter has been more entertaining. I am a bookworm, in addition to writing, the other thing that encourages me is to study, let's see how I organize with my time and when I manage to get a new chapter.


	10. Split Desires

One of Hollow's most notable qualities was his stubbornness, his tenacity had led him to defeat every opponent who had crossed his path. He never gave up on his crusade to free the world, and if he had been able to defeat a God, now he wouldn't give up on his goal of getting along with Orchid.

It had been a few hours since the mantis had kicked him out of her room, and he supposed she would have calmed down a bit. This time, trying to be more careful and polite with the female, he made sure to knock the door to ask permission to enter. From the inside they said "come in", but there was something strange in the voice that spoke, it was a male voice.

He hurried in, wondering who would be with her.

Inside the room, he found Orchid asleep on her bed, he noticed that there were marks of dry tears on her face. But in contrast to that, she had an expression of complete peace and tranquility. She looked happier than he had ever seen her. That would have been fine, if it wasn't because that joy seemed to be caused by Big. The mantis had her head resting on his lap while he caressed her absently.

Hollow made an expression of disgust, he had worked so hard to gain the confidence of that mantis and in the end she ended up sticking to her brother. It was unfair!

With annoyance he approached both bugs and stared at them with an angry expression. Of course Big, being the only one awake, was the only one who noticed him, but he did not give it much importance and kept his usual calm and carefree attitude.

"Hello Hollow, I'm glad to see you. What brings you here?"

"(What the hell are you doing!)"

"I was making her sleep. The poor bug looked very exhausted and stressed, but I managed to calm her down. Look how she sleeps, nobody would think she is an expert predator, right?"

"(... Why ....)" Hollow looked very upset.

"Why what?"

"(Why is she asleep in your lap with such confidence and she doesn't let me even get close? How did you do it?)"

"Are you jealous?" The monarch said jokingly.

"(I don't know)" He looked away "(I don't think this is jealousy, it only bothers me that she fondles you before me, it seems unfair)" Big sighed.

"Hollow... Taking care of her properly does not mean giving her everything you think she needs, you have to give her what she really needs, and that's freeing her. The poor female is stressed and depressed in this place. I don't know much about mantis, but if they have isolated themselves in their kingdom it will be for something. Maybe they have needs that we don't understand. I know you have visited them and you know them a little better, but you have not chatted with them either, right?"

"(Actually, I can't ...)"

"Then you don't even know if you're doing the right thing with her, or if you can take care of her properly."

"(But... Hornet has talked to them! She knows them better, maybe she can talk to Orchid and ...)"

"Don't expect she to convince her to stay, Hollow. Look... We'll let Hornet talk to her, but if in the end the decision is that she should return to her homeland, you have to promise me that you'll let her leave. Understood?"

(I... Ok ... Whatever is best for Orchid)" he said resignedly.

"Perfect"

The huge vessel slid gently trying to stand up without waking the mantis, but she was asleep so deeply that in addition to growling and writhing a little, she showed no more reaction. 

"(Well, let's go find Hornet now)"

"Sure, I have some questions to ask, apparently something bad happened to Quirrel and I'm worried."

"(Quirrel is bad?)"

Hollow with his protective nature always cared for all his loved ones, and Quirrel had a special place in his heart, not only for being his sister's husband, but also for being his best friend and one of the first people he had met when he arrived to Hallownest. That's why he hurried out to look for Hornet. Big just watched him walk away and shook his head disapprovingly.

"Hollow, someday you'll have to learn to calm down..."

Hornet got up lazily from the bed and stretched trying to compose herself, she was somewhat sore, tired and hungry. She did not deny that she had enjoyed her impromptu romantic encounter, but it was not something that had been in her plans and now she worried about all the time she had lost in it.

She was beginning to feel the anxiety of moving away from her eggs. It is true that she had left them in the care of Ania, her loyal servant, and that they were protected in that secret room of her den, but she could not help worrying, the political situation of her territory made her eggs in constant danger. Although she had an army of devotees and arachnids loyal to her, there was a small group that questioned her authority and above all, they doubted that a child begotten by a pill bug could be an appropriate heir, so Hornet feared an attack on her childs. She didn't want to see them broken.

She felt the terror invade her, she had to return home quickly. She huffed annoyed as she dressed. How did it all end this way? She still didn't understand it very well, she only knew that her brother had brought a dangerous creature back home. She thought that after the matter with the demonic bat spits fire that he had adopted years ago, he would never commit that kind of imprudence again. But apparently Hollow never learned. Now Hornet was only afraid he would end with a broken heart again.

She looked at the bed where her partner lay asleep, that pheromone issue was a terrible thing. Poor mantis, being away from home during a heat is a horrible thing. In other circumstances Hornet would have expelled that mantis from the castle without any regret, but doing that while she was going through that state would be cruel. She sighed. First she would have to solve the pheromone problem and, above all, make her brothers understand the situation before taking any action.

She began to think about how uncomfortable the situation would be. She was prepared to explain the ins and outs of reproduction to her children someday, but not to her brothers. She wasn't sure if they would fully understand what Orchid was going through, that is, none of them would experience that kind of urgency at some time in their lives, it wasn't something they could identify with.

In her thoughts, the queen left the room and went out into the hall. The poor had not taken three steps when Hollow appeared out of nowhere and collided with her, and unfortunately, due to the larger size of the vessel, he ended up crushing her. That would definitely not end well.

"(Hornet!)" Hollow shouted cheerfully when he saw his sister.

"Hollow!" Hornet shouted furiously when she saw her brother.

"(What have I done now?)"

"You crushed me!"

"(Ah, it was that)" He didn't seem to give the matter more importance "(Come, I need you to talk to ...)"

"Don't act like it doesn't matter!" This scream was enough to intimidate the vessel, a sermon was coming. "You crush me, you don't apologize and you expect me to go with you wherever you think. Why are you like that? You should be more careful and more considerate. Besides, I have already told you that it is dangerous to run through the halls when you are a large and bulky bug, but of course, you never think of anything..."

That turned out to be one of Hornet's legendary sermons that everyone tried to avoid at all costs. There was a common consensus that the spider queen was terrible, and she didn't need to be violent to put someone in their place, her presence alone was capable of intimidate the majority. Perhaps that would be part of the Pale King's inheritance. It was rare for someone of such short stature to impose such respect.

Hornet's scolding continued for several minutes without anyone even trying to stop her, in fact, the sound of her voice through the corridors was enough for many insects passing by to divert their path and find another route to their destination. The angry monologue of the monarch could have extended over a long period, if was not because she was suddenly raised in the air by two huge hands, they took her carefully until she was at eye level of its owner.

"Well, I think it was enough," Big said kindly.

"Get me down..." the annoyed female growled.

"Do you calm down first?"

"I'm already calm"

"Good"

Big put her back on the floor where the crossbreed just stared at him with a serious expression. In fact she was silent for a few moments before returning to the word.

"Well, I guess now that I have both of you here, it's a good time to demand an explanation. Why do you have a mantis lodged in the palace?"

"Hollow brought her" Big said quickly.

"(You said she could stay)" The knight excused himself fearing his brother would blame him.

"Well, you brought her half dead of anemia, I couldn't throw her away"

"(But it made you sad too)"

"At first, yes. But then when they explained to me the circumstances in which they found her, the truth, she generated me a lot of distrust"

(And now it turns out that I am the guilty for everything?)"

"You are always the guilty of everything" he said jokingly.

"(Big!)"

"Well, I don't want you to blame each other. For now I need you to explain the circumstances of that insect"

"Oh sure." Big decided to expose the situation fearing that his brother would not present things impartially. "That mantis was found hunting in Clara's territories. As you can guess, she did it without authorization, although because she failed to kill any prey, her charges were forgiven. However, when Hollow surprised her, he left her seriously injured, and feeling bad about it, he brought her here"

"(It wasn't exactly because I hurt her)" Hollow said. "(She is a poor mantis rejected by her family, she is alone and helpless, she even tried to kill herself)"

"Hollow," Hornet interrupted him. "A mantis would never commit suicide by loneliness. In general they tolerate loneliness very well. Probably she wanted to kill herselves for a matter of honor or something, that would be more typical of them. Like when she saw the newspaper that talked about her supposed relationship with you. That is something too shameful to bear it"

"(It seems silly to me)"

"Maybe for you, but not for a mantis, they are somewhat short-minded and have a hard time accepting new ideas. Although I suppose living in isolation without knowing anything about the world makes it understandable. It also seems to me that many of their customs are stupid, but they must be respected, as long as they do not harm the bugs of other kingdoms, we do not need to enter into conflict"

"From what you say, it is unlikely that we will understand each other with this female" said Big, to which Hornet nodded. "Then I have to assume that in this case it would be best to return her to her home in Fungal Wastelands"

"Well... What is the best depends on what you intend to achieve. You said she had been rejected by her family, I guess that means she is an exile, right? In that case the return to their lands would be the equivalent of certain death"

"No! ... Cof cof." Hollow's scream, despite its low volume, slightly damaged his throat.

"Then there is no salvation for her, right?" Big said worried about Hollow's reaction to it.

"Well... While the mantis are somewhat short-minded, it's not like they can't adapt to civilized life. I have a friend who is an exiled mantis and gets along with everyone"

"(Sharpy?)" Hollow felt his hopes renewed "(Right! I had forgotten her. Do you think she can receive Orchid?)"

"I don't think she is willing, that is, it is a time of heat for the mantis. Now she must be more concerned with caring for herself than dealing with another exile"

"Heat?" That word was totally foreign to Big.

"Yes, heat... Her reproductive stage, the mantis have it during this month"

"(Orchid is going to be a mother?)" Now Hollow was more terrified at the thought of leaving her.

"No! That is, only if they fertilize her at this time"

"(So Orchid wants to be a mom and she is looking for a partner?)"

"Not necessarily"

"Then why is she in heat if she doesn't want to be a mother?" Big didn't quite understand either.

"She can't control it"-

"(So she is forced to be a mother?)"

"No, if she doesn't want to, then..."

"But..."

"Shut up and let me explain!"

During the next half hour Hornet had to explain the ins and outs of reproduction to his brothers. Both had a vague idea of how things happened, knowing that a male and female were required for that process, but the details of the moments appropriate for that, and everything about feeling and desires was something completely new to them. And as Hornet anticipated, it was a little complicated for them to understand.

"So, it's like in her mind she decided she doesn't want to have babies, but her body asks her to copulate with someone" Big summed up.

"Exactly," Hornet confirmed. "And this conflict between her mind and her body probably has her very unstable and emotional. So she probably isn't acting as she normally would. On the other hand, her own body is also calling other males to join her through her pheromones"

"(That sweet smell that surrounds her lately)"

"Yes, that one!"

"If you don't want to be a mother, that sounds like a problem"

"And it is. So, although I agree that this mantis must go, it seems me cruel to let her go now. I would really recommend waiting for the end of the month"

"(Until the end of the month...)" Hollow's eyes shone with hope.

"Hollow, she won't stay with us" said Big.

"(But...)"

"Without buts" He gave him a look that left no room for aftershocks, then turned once more to his sister. "Well... While we wait for her heat to end, is there anything we can do to help her?"

"Keep her busy doing something" the spider said. "At least that works with me"

"Have you had a heat?" Big asked with surprise.

"Of course I had a heat! In fact several... The spiders unlike the mantis we have four short heats during the year... But hey, why wouldn't I have one? I am a girl after all"

"(Well....)"

"Hollow!" Now Hornet seemed somewhat offended "That you don't find me attractive doesn't mean I'm not a girl. In fact more than one person has been romantically interested in me during my life"

"(Ah yes, your two girlfriends)"

"They weren't my girlfriends! They were stalkers, I've already told you thousands of times!" Hornet was red. "You're going to get it in my face all my life, right?"

"(Yep)"

"Oh Hollow," Hornet sighed and began to walk away.

"Where are you going Hornet?" Asked Big.

"Where else? I'm going to take care of the little problem they brought to the palace"

Orchid opened her eyes lazily and turned on her bed looking for comfort. She stretched a little and her claws reached a pillow that was close. She pulled it to herself and hugged it delightedly with its softness and sighed happily finally waking up from her sleepiness.

She was strangely calm, or rather relieved, it was as if a weight had been removed from her. She looked at the ceiling distractedly meditating on her sensations, perhaps that sudden well-being was due to having cried. Normally she never cried, and if by mere chance she dared to release a tear, she did it in absolute solitude, she could not afford to show such weakness, she would lose respect for the rest. But the undeniable reality was that crying had helped her feel better, in fact it wasn't just crying, being comforted by that sweet-looking giant was what had calmed her most...

He pressed the pillow against her chest trying to contain her sensations, thinking about that king for some reason made her happy... Surely the heat had her emotions made a mess, otherwise it could not be explained why she wanted to see him again, especially considering that until a few hours ago, it was Hollow for whom she sighed...

And then the color came to her face when she thought about what had happened a while ago. Now that she noticed it, it was not only her spirit that was relieved, her body also seemed satisfied. Distractedly she took one of her claws towards the center of her tail. She remembered Hollow's heavenly touch, how he had walked on her surface, how he had touched her entrance, how she had sighed with his massages and caresses. Her temperature rose before those pleasant memories, and she wished to repeat that experience.

And then the confusion settled in her chest. What the hell was wrong with her? Now she didn't even know what she really wanted.

She sat up in bed scared. She had already gone through a few heats in her life, she had felt desire and longing for other males, it was natural after all, but she didn't remember that her wishes were so intense, or that they were so focused on a particular individual, in fact, that was the strangest thing. Besides, now she not only wanted to fulfill her fantasies, for some reason, she wanted to talk to that pair of bugs, this desire caused her so much confusion.

Frightened and overwhelmed by the complex sensations that tormented her, she was only able to lament and launch a desperate prayer to the Lord of the Shades. Another point that worried her was to think about in what minute she became so devoted to that God, and at this point she spoke to him almost daily.

Suddenly, she felt the sound of the door latch opening. She immediately stood up and got ready to fight. In fact she didn't really want to fight but it was already a custom rooted in her being. Always being on alert and reacting violently to any intruder.

As soon as the door opened, a shadow entered with the speed of an arrow. Orchid did not even notice when her hands and legs were tied again and she had the spider on top of her pointing her with her needle.

"How... At what time?" The mantis was surprised and horrified to think of the spider's speed, she thought she was the fastest. How did this happen?

"I'm sorry things have to be that way, but I'm not in the mood for silly fights, nor do I have time for that, so I better leave you tied and calm" Orchid gave her a murderous look.

Soon the insect noticed that Hornet was looking for something under her cloak, this made her nervous. Being tied in front of Hollow seemed appealing and even exciting, but in front of this female it was something scary. Although now that she thought about it, perhaps the reason she liked so much to be vulnerable to Hollow was because she was certain that he would never harm her. She could be weak, be defeated or crushed and never have to face a negative consequence of this. In a way it was a kind of relaxation.

the sensation of something cold in her body woke her from her thoughts, and she ended up letting out a screech of terror that almost left Hornet deaf.

"Ahhh... Hey, it's not that bad, I'm not going to kill you or anything, it's just a damp cloth"

Orchid blinked confused and noticed that in effect, Hornet had placed a pretty piece of embroidered cloth on her. It was light blue and had geometric patterns decorating it. It was tied around her waist, so it covered the back of her tail. The mantis were not very fond to use accessories, except for those its represented their status, but she was not going to deny that she liked the pareo quite a lot, although it bothered her that it was wet.

"What is that?" She asked without reservation.

"It is what I use when I have to face my heat. A cloth impregnated with vervela extract. The liquid from this plant neutralizes the pheromones. If you use it this way you can go wherever you want without fear that the males begin to follow you"

Orchid looked at the cloth, she was marveled. She had no idea that such methods existed, if in her tribe they had such technology, heats would be more comfortable for females and they would not have to hide in the most remote corner of Fungal Wastes.

He couldn't help feeling gratitude towards the spider queen, but the prejudices of her tribe weighed on her mind. Hornet was a spider, an inhabitant of Deepnest, the land with which they had been enmity since ancient times. She was an enemy, someone she could not trust. That's why it didn't fit in her head the fact that she wanted to help her without expecting anything in return... Or maybe this kind gesture had a reason?

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Did she intend to win her favor to intercede for her before the Lord? What a fool! Her people were above her own person, she would never betray her people for a simple act of kindness. That's why instead of thanking, she asked.

"Why?"

"Why? Oh come on, I am female like you, I know how complicated this period is, and for the mantis it is worse. That is to say you have only one heat in the whole year and it is very long, it must be a nightmare. And as I understand what it is to go through that, I want to help you"

"But I am a mantis"

"And? I have a friend who is a mantis and that has never been a problem among us"

"Friend?!"

Orchid felt her claws twitch with tension. A mantis friend of the spider queen? But how was that possible! Surely she was a traitor to the race, it was unthinkable that a mantis and a spider were friends.

"Yes, her name is Sharpy. Despite her somewhat scary appearance she is a good person, she works in the city of tears as editor-in-chief of the romantic novels section. Imagine it! A mantis lover of romance. Who would believe it? But she is extremely happy living as she lives, she even has a lot of friends. Now that I think about it, maybe you should talk to her sometime, since both are exiled, it would be helpful to chat with someone who has been through it"

An exiled mantis, that made sense, she a rejected one, perhaps even a traitor, for something they had expelled her from the tribe. Her first thought was to reject any possibility of encountering that insect, an exile deserved only contempt, but then reconsidered the idea. Hornet said she was happy... Was that possible? How could a mantis be living happily among weak insects in that city full of scum? It did not fit in her head and for that reason she felt intrigued.

Above all, Orchid was curious, although this was a quality that she never exploded due to the mantis' life system. But now she didn't have to impress anyone or maintain her composure. She could freely admit that she wanted to meet that mantis and talk to her, she wanted to know more, she was dying to satisfy her curiosity.

The sound of the door alerted them to the presence of someone else. The truth was that the room was open, but Hollow did not dare to enter without permission, and so he had his head peeking shyly and looked at them pitifully.

"You can enter," Hornet said, taking the liberty of inviting him without consulting the mantis.

The vessel entered happily and approached the two girls. He was holding Soul's board and was ready to say a few things to Orchid. This time he would expose his thoughts and they would come to an understanding. He wanted to let her know that she had all his support and that he least wanted was to bother her. So he took out the magic pencil. He was about to write when the mantis interrupted him abruptly.

"I want you to take me to meet the exiled mantis that lives in the City of Tears"

The tone in which she said it was not kind, in fact it sounded more like an order than as a request, but in a way this made Hollow happy. For the first time Orchid asked him for something, he would finally have the opportunity to do something for her.

..........

After a visit that extended more than they would have liked, Quirrel and Hornet returned home. The spider looked extremely exhausted after the whirlwind of emotions and things she had to face. Her husband for her part repeated over and over again how much she regretted what had happened.

"Quirrel... I already told you that it doesn't matter, what happened, happened and there are no more turns to give it" Hornet said as they left the station.

"But I wasn't supposed to hinder your path, the idea was to support you. For this I would have been better doing classes today"

"Well... If it makes you feel better, I don't regret it" A slight blush painted Hornet's face. "It's always nice to hang out with you, especially now that we haven't had much time to be together"

"Hornet...."

Quirrel in a spontaneous show of affection kissed the spider who backed away somewhat surprised.

"Quirrel! Save those attitudes for when we are alone!"

"Well, I don't see anyone else here" the insect replied jokingly.

Hornet was going to replicate something when the solitude they shared was broken by a devotee who approached them running extremely agitated.

"My queen! You has finally returned!"

"What happen?" Immediately Hornet acquired a more authoritarian and distant attitude. "Speak now"

"My lady." The creature bowed respectfully. "Your den... This..."

"My children!" Hornet shouted in terror and immediately rushed out of the station.

Hornet felt her heart pounding, she was afraid. Now she regretted having taken so long to visit the white palace, leaving her offspring so long alone was dangerous and now she saw how her worst nightmare came true.

When she reached the edge that marked the end of the station, she saw that her home was surrounded by a large multitude of arachnids. Was the situation worse than she expected? It was strictly forbidden to all approach her den when she was not present, the only exceptions were Ania and Quirrel.

With a series of acrobatic jumps and maneuvers with her needle, she arrived home in record time, then raising her voice made her presence felt.

"What's going on here! Why have you approached my den during my absence?"

"My queen!" A familiar voice suddenly shouted.

Hornet increasingly scared, saw Ania limping leaning on a cane, she looked very hurt.

"Ania! What happened!"

"Majesty... Someone tried to hurt the eggs, luckily I was able to repel him and protect them, but the hiding place was somewhat damaged.

"What!?"

"We've already reduced the attacker" said a devotee who approached them. "We have him imprisoned in one of the hidden cells of the village, so that you can dispose of him freely.

"Thank you... I... I'll take care of that matter later... Please, I need Ania to be treated as quickly as possible and... I need to assess the situation myself, for now you can leave"

"Majesty, are you all right?"

"Don't worry, now retire. Please"

For Hornet it was very complicated to maintain composure and act according to her status. At that time she just wanted to scream desperately and run to see her children. But she stood firm and entered her rooms with a dignified attitude.

Once she saw herself alone, she ran to the hidden place behind the curtain and checked with horror that part of the intricate web of thread she had woven for their protection was broken. She began to enter the room until she noticed that the background threads still were in good condition, this calmed her a little. Apparently Ania managed to stop the attack of the attacker just in time.

Apparently Ania managed to stop the attack of the attacker just in time.

She finally reached the nest and found that the eggs were in perfect condition, healthy, whole and without any cracks on their surface. Only then she calmed down and allowed herself to breathe easy again. She took one of her little ones and hugged them affectionately.

"Oh... You don't know how worried I was, I'm so glad you're well"

The spider remained in that position for a few minutes before a familiar voice interrupted her.

"Hornet? Everything is Ok?"

"Yes Quirrel, they're all fine"

"Oh, you don't know how glad I am"

Hornet placed the ovoid back in the nest and hurried out to meet her husband, who hugged her to comfort her.

"I was so scared"

"Me too... I was very afraid"

"Definitely... The person responsible for all this will pay dearly."

"There's no doubt... But... I don't think he is the only one interested in seeing this nest fail"

"What do you mean?"

"If we do not take precautions this situation can be repeated again, and perhaps with fatal consequences"

"So what do you suggest we do Quirrel?"

"I think we should change the place of the nest."


	11. The Begin of the Change

The sound of Hornet's footsteps echoed loud and clear in that dark and sinister den. Those were the dungeons, a hidden and very difficult area where Deepnest's worst criminals were kept waiting for their sentences. Actually most of the cells were empty, there were not many ruffians that ended up in that place, most died before. But occasionally some were captured or for some reason they were kept alive, and in those cases the dungeons were used.

Now the spider queen was about to meet the criminal who had attacked her precious eggs. Before having him in front, Hornet took time to breathe deeply and calm down, the rage she felt against that individual could lead her to kill him and she did not want that, she needed to interrogate him, to know if there were more people plotted to eliminate her offspring.

When she felt ready enough, with a signal she told the guard to guide her to the prisoner, and when she had him in front, every murderous eagerness she had had dissipated.

The bug in question was a spider, one that looked extremely hurt, he had three of his eight legs bandaged, there were numerous scratches on his body, but the most impressive was his face. His jaw was broken, or at least it looked like that. Swollen and with terrible wounds.

"Uuuug! Nhhnggg nhhnnnggg!" The spider shouted crawling towards the queen until he hit the bars of his cell.

"For Wyrm! This guy looks awful.." Said Hornet disgusted. "You didn't need to left him like that. It was me who was responsible for deciding his punishment!"

"Believe it or not, we have done nothing but heal his wounds. That's how we captured him, that maid of you was the one who left him like that."

"Ania? She did all this!?"

Hornet was admired, she never expected her personal servant to be capable of such a thing, because at first glance she looked like a typical house spider, more accustomed to housework than fighting powerful opponents. But she assumed that in extreme cases, even the weakest of the creatures are able to draw all their power in order to defend their life, or that of their loved ones.

In truth she was very grateful for having her defending her eggs with such fierceness, but her excess of enthusiasm had proved a problem, because now the prisoner with his broken jaw was unable to articulate any word, he could only emit incomprehensible babble. They could not get no useful information from him in an interrogation.

"Is there no way he can talk again?" Hornet asked the guard.

"Well... The truth is that his prognosis is not very promising. Even taking proper care of his wounds may never speak again, and if he does, doctors say he will take a long time to achieve it. For now, his great challenge is to survive, he cannot chew his food, we have to feed him with ground meat.

A chill ran down the back of the crossbreed. Thanks to Ania this guy was already receiving exemplary punishment, she doubted he wanted to damage defenseless eggs again. But beyond his penance, what mattered to her was to have information from the others involved who wanted to see her offspring desd.

"Can he write?" Asked the monarch. "If at least he can communicate something is enough for me."

"The truth he has some difficulties to take utensils and other things. With his wounded legs as he has not even been able to weave, much less will he be able to take a pencil. But... His limbs have a better prognosis, in a couple of weeks he will recover all his mobility and in that sense, he can have a normal life."

"I see..."

"Nnghghg! GGgnnnngngn!" The prisoner waved his bandaged legs by pulling them out through the grid trying to get Hornet's attention, but she only looked at him with contempt and moved away from the cell.

"Don't beg for mercy, because I won't have it with you. You dared to attack my children and I will never forgive you." After that she turned to the guard. "Keep him locked and try to heal him as quickly as possible, I need he to tell me what he knows."

"Nggngngngng! Ggnnnnhhhh!"

Hornet ignored the pleas and supplications of the criminal and turned away from him just by giving him one last angry look. Then she noticed that the bug was making a somewhat strange gesture, he was bringing two of his legs towards his head and pointing to the top of it.

A bug with a hat? Maybe a headband? Hornet thought to herself. Was he trying to betray his organization? She was quite good at interpreting the mimicry, but now she didn't have time for that, she had an extremely important task to accomplish, another day or later she would try to communicate with him.

...........

Hornet arrived at her house immersed in her thoughts, her concentration was so deep that she almost collided with Ania.

"My queen beware!" The servant shouted holding Hornet to prevent her from falling.

"Eh? Ah! I'm sorry Ania, I didn't see where I was going."

"It doesn't matter, I guess you had important things to think about. How did you do with the prisoner? Did you give him the death he deserved?"

"Dead? No, I need to ask him somethings and for that he must be alive, unfortunately he is so hurt that I will not be able to have any information until he recovers. Ania... I really appreciate you giving yourself completely to the protection of my eggs, my gratitude to you is endless, but you definitely exceeded your actions."

"I... I'm sorry, my lady" Ania gave an expression of deep concern and nervousness, almost as if she was scared. This made Hornet immediately soften her expression. "Calm down, I understand your actions, you will not be punished for this."

"Thanks, my lady, if you'll excuse me, I'm leaving."

For some reason Hornet's words failed to calm the spider and she sith dejected attitude left the queen alone. Hornet just sighed somewhat worried and turned to her rooms.

When she was in front of the door of her room, she began to listen to a song, it was a calm and cheerful tune, sung with a warm and affectionate voice. The spider smiled, it was Quirrel's lullaby, he was surely singing to his little ones.

She opened the door of the room softly and there she found the pill bug, humming that tune while looking affectionately at the eggs that lay well wrapped in a basket. The bug seemed radiant with happiness, it was not for less, it was the first time he could see his little ones, the nest that Hornet had built for them was so dense that he could not cross it. But now that it had been necessary to remove the eggs to move them, he could finally have them in his arms.

"They are ready?" Asked Hornet, interrupting the insect.

"Ah? Yes, we are ready."

"Are they very firm? The trips in stag cannot be said to be very calm, the excess of movement could hurt them, or affect them in some way..."

"Don't worry, I have them very firm and warm in their basket..."

"Do you think they would be cold? Ah! I heard that the archives are a cold and damp place, maybe I should pack extra blankets." Hornet headed for a piece of furniture where she kept some sheets and blankets.

"Hornet, don't worry so much," her husband tried to reassure her. "The archives are no longer what they were. Maybe before they were wet and full of water tanks everywhere, but that was because the place was conditioned to Monomon's requirements and she was a jellyfish. But since I took care of the place I have remodeled it a lot, now it is dry and fresh. The children will be fine there."

"Even so it won't hurt to make sure."

Hornet had already put the blankets in a huge bag where she was storing all the luggage she considered necessary. Quirrel sighed at the prospect of everything he would have to carry, but he couldn't blame her, she was a first-time mother, she was obviously worried about doing things right and was constantly afraid of doing something that would harm her children. Curiously, the pill bug was quite calm about the care of the eggs, as if he already knew what it was to go through that experience, but obviously that was not possible, was it?

He shook his head, frightening that thought from his head. He refused to accept that possibility, he had been told he was married once before Hornet, but no one mentioned that he had children, and if they did not make it, probably it was because there was none. Because they would never hide information like that, right?

He returned to reality and found the huge bag full of blankets and containers with herbs, the latter had medicinal plants ready to heal any health problem that arose. Quirrel had already told Hornet that he had a very complete first aid kit in the archives, but as always Hornet replied that it was better to make sure.

"Well Quirrel, I think this package is something heavy for you, so I will carry it, you carry the eggs. Carefully please!"

The insect blinked flattered, Hornet trusted him enough to let him carry the babies. Many spiders would never allow that, not even the father of their children.

They left the room and headed to the door of the den, where Ania was waiting for them to receive the relevant instructions while the homeowners were outside. However, when the servant spider saw the pill bug carrying the eggs, she became tense and her face showed a horrified expression.

"What happens Ania? Asked Hornet, looking strangely at the maid's attitude."

"E-e-he is carrying the eggs..."

"Yes, I allowed him to do it. Any problem?"

"But he... He... He is not a spider... How.... What if he does something to them?"

"He is their father, he will not harm them and he himself is a very careful person. In addition Quirrel will be the one who will watch the eggs in the next few weeks until they hatch." Ania had a hard time processing these words.

"What!? He taking care of the eggs!? But my lady... Didn't I do a good job? I protected your children at the expense of my safety."

"And I really appreciate it Ania, but for that reason I take them to a safer place, a place where no one will look for them and they will be safe without the need for anyone to take a risk. That way you just have to make sure the house is clean, aren't you happy?"

"Yes but... Where do you take them? Maybe I can go and help a little once in a while..."

"That's a secret, only Quirrel and I know it. For security reasons it is better that way."

"But if it's a secret, I swear that I won't tell anyone.

"It's also for your own safety, Ania," Quirrel said. "If they capture you and decide to interrogate you, it won't be pleasant for you."

"Do you think I would betray my loyalty to the queen revealing her secrets? Never! I am absolutely faithful to her and ..."

"I understand it Ania, sorry I didn't mean to offend you." He hurried to calm her down, but the spider just looked at him indignantly.

"Anyway, don't worry about this, babies will be safe." Hornet resumed the word. "We will bring them back when they are born and at least have the ability to hide or flee. I will return at dusk, please keep everything clean and tidy and buy some blue dye, I want to weave a new blanket of that color. Until later, take care."

The servant spider saw both bugs move away with her precious cargo, and a rage settled in her being. She still couldn't understand why Hornet trusted a creature that it wasn't a spider. How was it possible to let him carry the eggs? She was absolutely loyal, cared for her well-being and served her in all she could, but Hornet never allowed her such an honor. But it didn't matter, she would show her that she was trustworthy, that she deserved his recognition, she would strive to achieve it.

.................................................. ..............................

Ze'mer gracefully dodged the movements of the vessel in front of her. Her speed was still higher than that of the little one, but she could clearly see how he was improving with each training, now avoiding his attacks represented a real challenge and there were few opportunities she had to attack.

Suddenly, the knight in training made a maneuver that was not expected, he did a quick jump in one foot, with this he drove to her with his nail ready to go through her head. The lady was in a position where she had no way of responding on time and was doomed to be killed if nobody did anything, then at the last moment she screamed with all her might.

"Stop!"

As soon as they heard the order, the vessel down his weapon and with a somersault landed away from the knight, then he turned to her and stared at her with an empty expression.

"Mai, mai, le'mer improves day by day, there is little left for the day that is better than che. Che scares, sorry to say" The little one kept looking at her without expression "Although sure to le'mer no matter what Che says. Nahlo nahlo, Che feels pity for the little monster without love created by me'hon king."

"I don't think this creature is pitiful," Clover said, walking towards them.

The knight watched the mantis approach cautiously, she felt some tension in her body, as if she was nervous and alert, also noticed certain wounds on her body, especially one of her claws that was hurt.

"This artificial beast is by far the most perfect thing I've ever seen," Clover continued. "There are no feelings or emotions inside, he is powerful, ruthless and does what he should do without questioning anything. What is a shame, is that his lack of mind prevents him from thinking and acting on his own. But a being like this I would respect him."

"wai le'mer says such horrible things, living without love nahlo."

"Love is just a disease that clouds reason and forces insects to perform stupid actions, is weakness and defeat."

"Love is cooperation and help," Ze'mer challenged. "Many bugs survive by supporting each other."

"Weak. A strong insect does not depend on others and does not let themselves be dominated by their feelings... They does not suffer." She brought her healthy hand to a wound in her torso. "They don't care about the contempt of others.

Ze'mer looked at the mantis with pity understanding the situation of her protégé, then sighed regretfully. This poor girl was very wrong on her way in life, her mind was riddled with ridiculous and useless ideas about what strength was, she needed to learn many things and she would take care of that.

"Che already decided. Che trains Le'mer, Che teaches true meaning of strength.

The mantis felt her heart skip. Was she going to train with one of the great five? One of the strongest knights in the kingdom? Surely that would make her very strong, help her improve her position within the tribe and be respected. If she returned as a powerful warrior nobody would question her long absence, she could say she was training, it was perfect. She looked at the insect with a mixture of gratitude and enthusiasm that moved her a lot.

"Le'mer seems happy," said the knight stroking the mantis's head.

"Don't touch me!" Clover shouted in shame with her red face, although she did not deny that for some reason she had liked this show of affection.

............................................

Big sighed at the thought of those buried memories. At the time when those events occurred, he still did not develop his heart and mind, he was a pure vessel, just as his father had designed him. But all the vessels had a defect of design, they could generate feelings and thoughts after living closely with other beings, so it had been with him, with Hollow and with all his siblings.

Perhaps his first glimpses of emotionality began to develop by observing Zemer's interactions and flirting with her apprentice, it could be said that as the young mantis learned to accept her heart, he began to form his own. And in some strange way, it seemed that history was repeating itself, this time with Orchid and with his brother. Would there be any way for this stubborn Lord mantis to be civilized?

The sound of an object hitting his desk took him out of his thoughts, then when he looked up he found Hollow trying to get his attention with a pencil. When he finally made himself noticed by his brother, he extended a paper that the monarch read with curiosity.

"So... your vacation request, huh?" Big wasn't too surprised, just something worried.

"(Yes, I thought a lot about what I was told that I can't take care of Orchid properly, so I thought about my vacation, in that way I can spend time with her. Besides, it will only be until the end of the month, after that she will leave. Right?)"

"I see... Well... Although I don't think it's all right that you spend your vacations taking care of that creature, I can't stop you". He pulled out his royal seal with which he proceeded to stamp the document. "During your absence, Myla will take your place, however you must be aware that as a Knight of Hallownest you have sworn allegiance to the kingdom, and in case of emergency your presence will be required. Although we are in peacetime, with some luck you can enjoy your vacation without interruptions."

"(I hope so, I don't want to leave Orchid alone)."

Big looked at his brother in an analytical way, Hollow's behavior worried him a lot. It is true that he had a tendency to help all the unfortunates who ran into his path, but he never got so deeply involved with anyone.

"(Is there something wrong, Big?)" Hollow looked at him curiously at the seriousness he showed.

"Well... You always tend to skip your vacation, even when you take them you keep fluttering around the castle and it seems that you have not left. Why is that mantis so important to you as to spend so much time with her?"

Hollow took a few seconds before answering, he had clear ideas, but it was hard to talk about it.

"(Is that she... She...)" He looked down sadly. "(She reminded me of you)"

"Me?" Big the truth could not think what he would have in common with Orchid.

"(Yes... I saw her try to kill herself, I saw her bury a weapon in her body and bleed for it... She reminded me when you were captive for the infection and during our fight you stabbed yourself... At that moment... Orchid's eyes showed as much hopelessness as yours)"

The king was dumb with the impression. Now his brother's motivation was clearer, as far as he knew, that moment of his life was something that haunted him in his nightmares to this day.

"Hollow... Her situation and mine are different, I had an almighty goddess in my head controlling my mind, I was trapped and saw no way out."

"(She is trapped by a network of silly customs and beliefs and sees no way out either. Nothing is more serious than another if she believes otherwise! Hornet already explained to me the mantis' way of thinking, and now I understand her. I want to show her that things are not as she thinks, I want to show her another way of living, so that she never believes that death is the only way out)."

"I hope your efforts are not in vain, and that she does not get into trouble."

"(Don't worry, she is under my care)"

"That's what worries me."

"(Big!)"

"Well, anyway. You can retire, now you have a date with her, right?"

"(It is not a date, it is an outlet to interact with another mantis that went through the same as her)"

"Of course, whatever you say."

Hollow noticed the hidden mockery in his brother's words, so he gave him an annoyed look and left the room. But before closing the door he managed to hear the laughter that Big had been holding.

He closed the door and snorted bothered, letting out an audible groan, Big could sometimes be very annoying, if he wasn't his older brother and the king he seriously...

Hollow could not continue with his mental complaint. Suddenly he noticed that Soul and Izuri were facing him looking at him expectantly, as if they were waiting for the right moment to tell him something.

"(Do you need something?)" Soul immediately handed Hollow a notebook "(And what is that?)."

"(It's the list of my favorite places to eat in the city)."

"(And this is my list of fun places to visit)" Izuri said, extending a folded paper."

"(And what is all that for?)"

"(What is all this for? It's for your date with Orchid!)" SaidIzuri. He applauded showing his illusion "(Sure if you take her to these places this time you can kiss her)."

"(What!?)."

"(A knight knows when to surrender, so I will leave her heart in your hands)" Soul made an exaggeratedly dramatic gesture.

"(This is not a date!)"

"(A sister-in-law mantis will surely be entertaining)" Izuri seemed to ignore Hollow.

"(Maybe later she can introduce myself to one of her sisters)" And Soul did the same.

Hollow looked at them in a murderous way and wanted to "shout" many things, but there was someone who took the lead. Shadow, the 6-horned vessel appeared behind both boys, placed a hand on top of each of them and with a terrible and frightening expression told them.

"(I think someone here needs discipline)."

Izuri and Soul felt a chill run down their backs and as soon as they saw Shadow they ran away terrified. Hollow thanked his brother for the help, but he downplayed him.

"(Those clowns need discipline)". Shadow always disapproves of the childish and playful behavior of his siblings. "(They are always causing trouble around and talking about messes ...)" He look at Hollow with a hard expression "(I hope you don't get into any I don't want to have to save your ass later)."

After saying this he walked away down the hall.

Hollow smiled at this behavior. He knew Shadow, and knew that although he always acted as if they were all a nuisance, he always cared for them and wanted to protect them.

The young knight went to find his own magic board in his room (Big had given him one) and then went to the mantis chambers. Having already learned from previous experiences, he knocked on the door and waited patiently for her to open. When Orchid finally appeared, she looked at him with a stony expression and simply said.

"Let's go."

Hollow sighed overwhelmed, he had never had to deal with such a complicated person.

For the first time in weeks, Orchid was able to leave the White Palace. Guided by Hollow, she realized that wandering around the place was not complicated if she knew where to walk and what secret mechanisms to press to avoid the saws, the bad thing is that enough memory was required for that, and she was not going to learn that at once . She sighed defeated, for now she would still depend on these bugs.

She could try to escape during this outing but they went to a place she didn't know, she would be lost and the idea of asking for directions embarrassed her. However, she soon forgot the idea of escape, because other things grabbed her attention.

The first time she arrived at the White Palace she could not fully appreciate it because her circumstances were very precarious, she was dizzy from anemia and too overwhelmed by everything that had just happened to see where he was walking. She managed to distinguish an impressive construction that left her astonished. But now she had the time to contemplate the details, the ornaments, the sculptures, each brick of that castle was a piece of art. She entertained several minutes in that.

Hollow noticed that the mantis posture looked somewhat more humble. Sure she was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the construction, if she even looked more relaxed. He wanted to get her attention and put his hand on her back. As soon as she felt Hollow's touch, the mantis immediately reacted violently by throwing her claws towards the knight, he of course blocked the blow with ease.

"Don't touch me". The insect hissed.

Hollow nodded calmly and they both separated. After that they walked towards the stag station. Hollow was meditating on his actions and intending to be more careful with Orchid, while she was trying to hide the fiery fantasies that had arisen in her mind. How she hated being in heat, everything made her think about "that", especially Hollow. He had a nice, soft and warm touch, she would really like to be caressed by him.

At least all of her lustful thoughts vanished when she climbed into the stag.

Orchid's curiosity then took control of her mind. When they went to the palace the first time, they also rode a stag, but at that time she didn't payed attention to it, now she could analyze the creature in detail.

He had beautiful horns and strong legs, in addition to bright and curious eyes. He was a magnificent being, surely hunting one of these would be an experience. Yes, knowing this being, the first thing she thought about was his potential as a dam, but when she saw how tame he was and his use as a transport she changed her mind. In reality they were much better alive than dead. If there were one in the tribe they could use him to carry heavy prey instead of having to go a large group of mantis for that purpose.

Of course, she thought that would be unfeasible, in the tribe they would never want a weak being, even if they were useful. It was a shame. During the trip to the City of Tears, the mantis thought a lot about how she could convince her sisters to admit a stag into the territory, and then she ended up angry with herself. How did she think of such madness? Were these damn bugs polluting her mind?

The stag trip ended before Orchid realized. Hollow got off the bug first and then offered a hand to help her down. Of course Orchid rejected him, this time not to despise his gesture, but because she was afraid of being stimulated again by his touch. At least Hollow took it with philosophy and just sighed.

Finally they arrived at the City of Tears and Orchid was speechless at what she saw.

It was a huge city, the largest insect settlement she had ever seen, she couldn't believe it. It was hundreds of buildings made of stone and metal, not as beautiful as the white palace, but still impressive. However, the most incredible of all was the eternal rain. Now she understood where the name came from.

She stayed for several minutes under the water feeling the drops fall through her body, she was overwhelmed, she never imagined that there were wonders like this in the world, and for the first time she felt grateful to have abandoned her little piece of world in Fungal Wastes.

A metallic noise pulled her out of her trance and she noticed that Hollow had hit the floor with his nail to get her attention. The vessel indicated with a gesture to follow him and she obeyed.

Both went into the busy streets of the city without noticing that someone was following them.

"(Seriously, I don't know how you convinced me to do this stupidity)" Shadow said.

"(We didn't convince you of anything)" Izuri replied "(You wanted to come)"

"(Obviously I was coming, you pair of idiots sure get in trouble)"

"(You always think the worst of us)" Soul complained "(We're just going to make sure Hollow's date is a success)"

"(With you two, I Ionly omen disaster)"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy new year!
> 
> This story is turning out to be more interesting than I thought, I wonder what will happen now.


	12. Mantis Talking

For Hornet he trip in stag seemed eternal, although she had always considered that means of transport very comfortable and fast, the concern for her offspring left her hysterical. It was well known by all that it was not a good idea to move or handle the eggs too much, and now having to make such a long trip with them could be harmful, unfortunately the effects of this whole process would not know until the time of the hatching.

When finally Hornet and Quirrel arrived at the Queen station, to their surprise they found a party to receive them, which was headed no less than by the very queen Clare.

The spider sighed overwhelmed, she did not want to have so much attention on her, she just wanted to get to the archives quickly and accommodate her children, but unfortunately she could not despise the little root, at least she had to be polite and greet. If it had been for her, she would have kept the matter of the transfer of the eggs in complete secrecy, but since the place chosen to hide them was in Clare's territories, she was forced to ask for authorization. No one put any problem, even the root offered to protect the place within her limited possibilities, so Hornet was certain that her offspring would be welcome, but she was worried about everyone's excess of enthusiasm.

"Hornet!" Clare ran to hug the crossbreed effusively and Hornet returned the hug somewhat shyly.

Although at the beginning the queen was an apathetic and low expressive person, over time she had learned to manifest her emotions and be more affectionate, however, with certain people she had some problems to show closeness, Clare was one of them. She couldn't help the girl from reminding the late White Lady a lot, they were practically the same except that Clare had violet eyes instead of blue, and because the branches of her head instead of being withered were full of buds and little flowers. The White lady had been like a mother to Hornet and having this mother now become a little girl who need be taken care of was making her uncomfortable.

The other reason that made it difficult for her to show affection for the young lady was Dimityr, one of her most complicated sisters.

As always, this vessel was next to her queen, like an implacable shadow. She was a very tall girl, to the point that Hornet envied her. It seemed that of all the siblings she was the only one who had inherited the height of the Pale King, even Clare was almost as tall as she, although of course, as a root, when she was an adult she would have an impressive size.

The spider stared at Dimityr who watched her cautiously, as always.. Her elegant deer horns rose imposingly adding some extra height. Who did not know her could think she was a princess of that green kingdom, because the girl had mixed so well with the atmosphere and the locals that she had even acquired their habit of dressing with moss. Of course, since the moss did not grow naturally over her shell like in the mosskin, she had chosen to weave a cloak with silk, moss and flowers . Yes, she felt a great affinity for everything vegetable, Green Lands and the mosskin were her world and Clare her adoration, to the point of scratching on the obsessive.

And that was the problem with Dimityr, her hobby of being with Clare and taking everyone away from her made her annoying and intractable, she was a bit more permissive with her siblings but still seemed stressed every time they approached a distance "excessive" to the small root, in part this was one of the reasons why the two used to fight.

"Where are they?" The little root looked at her with her violet eyes brimming with emotion. "I want to see them! Ah! Quirrel has them."

Forgetting the spider queen completely, she ran to the pill bug and took a good look at the basket with the eggs, immediately Hornet stiffened. Then the little girl giving him her best tender look asked.

"Can I carry them?"

Immediately Quirrel felt the ice and fire flow through him. On the one hand his wife had a serious and almost deadly expression that clearly said he could not allow her to take them, but on the other hand, Dimityr had a threatening look with the implicit message that if he made Clare sad he would pay dearly. Fortunately a mosskin arrived to help him.

"Your majesty, the eggs should not be removed or handled in excess, that could kill the creatures inside. In fact the ideal would have been not to take them out of the nest, the best thing for them is to take them to their new home and accommodate as soon as possible. In addition, the eggs are not very different from a boring rock, when the child are born it will be more interesting and you can play with them."

"Ah... Well... Okay, then I'll wait for them to be born."

Quirrel sighed in relief. He noticed that Hornet now seemed calmer and Dimityr on her part... She had a red face and looked agitated. The idea of imagining her beloved Clare playing with Hornet's adorable grubs touched her and excited her equally. At least the vessel didn't have too many problems inher queen approaching harmless offspring.

The pillbug began the march towards the archives, his place of work and home during the next few days. Both had decided that they could no longer leave the eggs alone or in charge of people who did not have the strength to protect them, they did not want another loyal spider like Ania to end up injured. That is why they would hide them in the archives, nobody would think about looking for them in a place like that, in addition, Quirrel would be there to protect them. Even if he was a pillbug, he knew very well how to wield a nail and defend himself, and if it was for his children, he would become an implacable adversary.

But just for their protection, he should stay day and night in the place. He didn't like this much, but at least he had work to entertain himself and the place was wide enough not to feel locked up. Hornet would visit him every night, because of her duties as queen she could not be with him all day, but surely his friends and work colleagues would keep him company during the day. It was curious how sensitive he had become, for a long time he was a wandering traveler who roamed wild lands in absolute solitude. But now his pillbugs instincts seemed to have exacerbated and he longed for the company and the warmth of a family, perhaps he had become accustomed to a quiet life and in society, or was the age that began to weigh.

.................................................. .......

Endless drops fell on Orchid's head, the mantis was amazed feeling the water slide on her shell, although if she considered it well, over time maybe so much water would become somewhat annoying, but the city's insects didn't seem worried about this. They ignored the rain and dealt with their affairs.

The mantis had asked Hollow where all that water came from. Shehad heard stories that in the surface sometimes drops fell from the sky, drops so large that they could drown an insect and kill it, but the water here was soft and fine . The knight with his best letter had explained that above the city there was a huge underground lake, whose water seeped through the rock and then fell over the city. This information activated her innate curiosity and immediately expressed her desire to visit that place. The bug offered to take her there, but Orchid didn't know how to react to this offer.

The truth was that there was no logical reason to reject Hollow's proposal, but the disaster in which the Lord's mind had become prevented her from accepting it at first. Being close to him ignited her desire and increasingly she enjoyed being by his side. In general his kind and attentive treatment was beginning to soften her and that was something she didn't want to allow. But on the other hand, the idea of seeing a huge underground lake attracted her. She had already been impressed with the beauty of that city, now she wanted to see more, she wanted to explore and discover all the mysteries that the world outside of Fungal Wastes had to offer.

But Hollow was oblivious to all the internal debates of the mantis, and seeing her so serious with her eyes lost in the streets, he thought that she had not accepted the offer and decided to ignore him. The situation began to tire him, he was putting everything on his side to be kind, but it seemed to be useless. He hit the pencil against his magic board and told his companion to follow him.

To the surprise of both, Sharpy was not in the publishing house where she worked. Until that moment, neither of them knew it but Hallownest's labor laws allowed females to miss work during their periods of heat. Actually it was a law that everyone supported, because having males working alongside a female in heat could end up being something dangerous. However, whenever possible, the females had to take work to do from their homes, again something that nobody had problems with, as it was well known that keeping busy doing something was the best way to cope with that state.

Normally, the mantis did more executive and managerial tasks, but given her situation, she had chosen to carry a stack of manuscripts to review and edit at home. So after getting her address, Hollow and Orquídea headed Sharpy's department.

Orchid looked quite curiously at the halls of the residential building where they were, it was far from the magnificence of the white palace, but it was still much more impressive than the huts where the mantis lived. And these were the typical house of commoners in Hallownest? Nor is it that she envied them at all, the departments caused her a sense of confinement, in that sense she preferred the wide spaces of the palace, or her humble hut.

"Keeping this place clean must be a true feat," the insect commented. Hollow of course replied to her comment, although she had to wait for him to write the answer on his board.

"There are insects specialized in cleaning that are responsible for keeping everything in order. The interior of each home is the responsibility of its occupants"

"But these bugs don't reveal themselves and refuse to always do the same task?"

"It's their job, they chose it and they get paid for it. Each bug can choose the occupation that suits them or likes them, so everyone cooperates and works together to get the kingdom forward."

The Lord pondered Hollow's words. Things here were very different from at home and perhaps in some ways they would work better. As Lord, one of her usual tasks was to solve discussions and domestic quarrels, a common thing in the tribe. Although these issues were often resolved quickly, sometimes the fight escalated to dangerous levels, and as nobody wanted someone to end up dead by a stupid reason, the Lords intervened. Sadly a common motive for these "discussions" was who had to do the chores that day. Perhaps she had to admit that in Hallownest everything was not working poorly and that they could make some improvements to the tribe. When she returned home she would talk to her sisters.

Both bugs came to the door of Sharpy's apartment, then Hollow knocked... And the disaster broke out.

Sharpy was a peaceful mantis, she got along well with her neighbors, she had many friends, she loved her job and never attacked anyone unless it was a concerted match. But if she was in danger, she would not hesitate to defend herself with all her might, and although This was not the case, she thought she was in a deadly situation.

After her banishment, the mantis assumed that she would never see another person from her tribe, so she focused all her efforts on adapting to the city and buried in the back of her mind everything related to her life in the tribe. However, even after years of that had passed, occasionally some of her old fears still assaulted her. More than once she had woken up in the middle of the night screaming because in her dreams she saw the three Lords with their spears pointed against her, ready to kill her.

And now, she had her worst fear in front of her. Unlike Hornet, Sharpy was able to recognize the Lord even without her royal robe or crown. They had finally come to kill her, they would eliminate her for being a weak and unworthy mantis.

Hollow could have clarified the matter, but he had no voice nor time to write, so the battle that followed was inevitable, the editor took out her claws and attacked Orchid ready to defend her life at any cost.

A series of blows and the sound of objects breaking aroused panic in the neighbors, who at that time ran to hide in their homes, while outside in the halls you could see a pair of fierce mantis fighting with all their strength, while that behind them was running the knight with a sign that said "Stop!>. <"

For a change, Hollow's little common sense did not make him assume that none of them was going to take the time to read his poster.

However, in the midst of that heated battle, not everything was chaos and violence. Sharpy was worried that some insect would get hurt, so in a subtle and strategic way she was advancing through the corridors, leading her adversary up and up, until they finally reached the roof of the building.

Almost no one went to that place, there was only metal and the constant ringing of the drops of water, there they could unleash all their power without obstacles or interruptions. It took Hollow a while to reach them, he was strong, but he wasn't someone too fast, Orchid, his sister and even Izuri were faster than him in a race.

Now Hollow had the two females fighting to the death, that battle was dizzying, a coming and going of blows, each more fierce than the previous one, where the mantis moved with such speed that they seemed to vanish between raindrops, like two ghosts participating in a deadly dance, where elegance and violence set the pace of the encounter.

Hollow could not find a way to intervene and stop them, just as things were going, his only option would be to attack them both, but perhaps how much force would be necessary for that, he feared leaving them more wounded than necessary, apparently, despite their elegance, With the mantis, it was all about brutality, so he jumped with his sign up trying to be seen.

Meanwhile, the battle of the mantis continued. Orchid attacked with speed and precision, by far demonstrating why she had earned her position as Lord, her strength was tremendous, in addition to her ability. But to her surprise, defeating her adversary was proving to be a more complicated task than expected. What was happening here? Was this mantis stronger than her? No, that could not be! Surely so much time in captive in the castle had taken away the practice and therefore she had become weak.

Weak...

That was the biggest fear of a mantis, and the prospect of entering that state terrified Orchid in an unthinkable way. She began to attack with more ferocity and some despair. Sharpy seemed to realize it, so she took advantage of the situation in her favor. After each attack launched carelessly, the editor took advantage of the openings left to release an accurate counterattack that left a bleeding wound, and a pang of pain, but with adrenaline of the battle, it didn't seem to be noticed.

Gradually, Orchid began to weaken, her despair and Sharpy's considerable ability made a dent in her body, until the moment came when, after a bad maneuver, her limbs were not able to respond and she fell to the floor. Then she felt a sharp pain in her chest, where the winner hit her with her knee and pressed it using the weight of her body, but to completely secure her victory, she took her claws to the neck of her adversary leaving her in a posture where a bad movement would mean the end of her life.

A wave of relief swept through the winner mantis, she could live another day. But this feeling only lasted until she felt the touch of cold metal on her back. Suddenly, she managed to catch a glimpse of Hollow, who had his weapon pointing her directly, he had a look so fierce that a shiver ran through her body. That situation was very strange, it was very rare to see her friend's brother in such a state of aggression, for her he was only that carefree and cheerfull insect that still with her age kept asking for sweets when he went to visit her.

"Hey... No... It's not like I'm trying to kill her. Really!" The mantis was clearly nervous. "Or are you two here to end my life?" The latter was said with anguish in her voice."

"No... It was not in our plans to kill anyone... At least not today," said Orchid with some difficulty.

"Eh? Didn't you come to kill me? So... Oh how I sorry!"

Sharpy immediately stepped out of the Lord and helped her to stand up, then she gave them a lot of apologies and obeisances showing her shame for what had happened. Orchid was looking dumbfounded, Sharpy had been the winner, she shouldn't have such a slavish attitude towards the defeated, the winner could exercise her will. On the other hand, this female, after clearing up the misunderstanding, invited them to her house, served them tea, some sweets and attended them with the greatest courtesy. Why on earth did she act like this !? That made no sense and also made her feel very irritated, it was as if she felt sorry for her.

Actually, the latter was not true, she was not angry because she treated her well, it was the excuse she invented for not recognizing her jealousy because of Sharpy's proximity to Hollow.   
She was directly flirting with him. She could not ignore the way she seductively wiggled her tail every time she passed in front of him, how she brushed him "accidentally" every so often or took advantage of every excuse to touch him. She also wanted to!

Hollow on the other hand felt extremely uncomfortable, he knew Sharpy, he knew that she was affectionate and very fond of hugs, but she had never acted that way with him. It did not cost him much to relate this behavior to her heat, according to Hornet the females desperately sought the attention of a male and he... Well, he had no defined gender, but he acted as a male and the others saw him in that way, so although this mantis was not romantically interested in him, her instincts led her to seek his attention.

And this only made him feel increasingly disappointed in Orchid's attitude. Why didn't she look for him? Did she hate him enough to ignore her instincts and reject him so drastically? Why couldn't she hug him and talk to him affectionately like Sharpy? And why did he want she to do that? A blush swept the knight's face at the thought of the latter.

"Ok guys. What brings you here?" The hostess said, taking a seat in a couch next to Hollow, Orchid sitting from the armchair in front of her looked at her angrily.

"I wanted to meet the pathetic banished mantis that made its life in the city living alongside the rest of the scum."

The anger felt by the Lord made her words sound more rude than she would have liked, she could tell that even Hollow showed an expression of disgust at them, but she was using all her self-control to not jump on top of the other mantis and move her away from "her" male.

"Oh, well, I wonder who is the most pathetic of us? Do you want me to remind you who won the match?"

"I was not in my best form!" Shouted the Lord. "I have not been training for two weeks and locked in the White Palace, I have lost practice and my muscles have become numb."

"But it's two weeks, not two years or two months. Please, you are supposed to be a Lord, one of the strongest mantis of the whole tribe and I am a mantis to which they exiled because of be weak."

"Well, maybe there was a mistake in your sentence and you had more capacity than expected." Orquidea was tense and angry. "If you want to return you can..."

"I don't want to go back."

"What!? Why would you not want to return to your tribe?"

"Why? Here I have all the things I like. I love my work, I have many friends, there are restaurants, theater, shops. Maybe sometimes it bothers a little this water that never stops falling, but then I go for a walk to Forgotten Crossroad or to Dirtmouth and take a break. I don't have big luxuries but my life is good. Why would I want to return to that tribe inhabited by savages?"

"For the pride of the mantis!" She shouted, standing up.

"Pride? Pfff... You know... Over time, after living in this place and learning some things I have reached some conclusions. Mantis are not strong because of pride or status, the reason for being strong is to survive adversity. That is why exiling a mantis for having failed in a hunt, as was my case, seems excessive and unfair, if a mantis can ensure their own survival without harming the rest, why expel them?"

"Because it is..."

"Weak? Failing a hunt and leaving alive already shows strength, some dams are quite dangerous. And that reminds me, the other point with which I disagree is that they classify as weak any bug that is not a hunter or a fighter. Not all species were born to fight, they do not have the skills for that and it is not fair to compare ourselves. But that does not make them weak, they are strong in their own way, being able to escape from a hunter and get out alive is proof of their strength. For something the species has prospered.

"....."

Orchid did not have the answer to the arguments, since they were quite logical. During her life she had never thought of questioning the operation of the system, for her, things had always been that way and it seemed right, the "weak" bugs should be despised and separated from the rest of the worthy beings. But now she was confused with the new ideas presented by this mantis, everything was too much to be assumed quickly, basically to accept what they said was to destroy all her beliefs, her reality and basically her world.

She began to get nervous at the uncertainty she felt, so she decided to eat a little to try to calm down. She leaned forward and took a plate with a piece of cake from those who were placed on the little table in front of her and with all education she began to eat using a fork. Meanwhile, on the couch that was on the other side of the table, Hollow seemed to be communicating with Sharpy in some way, as he wrote quite enthusiastically on his board.

Orchid didn't know what he said, but apparently it was a good thing, as Sharpy showed a radiant smile and immediately gave another of her unnecessary hugs to Hollow. At that time they both had to separate and lean back, because their instincts warned them of a danger, which manifested itself in the form of a fork that flew right through the space they left.

They both looked away at the Lord, she was with her face red staring at them with anger and shame. She soon diverted the sight to the side. Given this, Hollow simply sighed tiredly, he was seriously getting bored of Orchid's aggressiveness. However, Sharpy was able to see beyond that simple act, there was something she needed to check, but for that she needed to get rid of Hollow for a moment.

"Hollow honey, would you mind doing me a favor and go shopping for jam at the store in front?" She started to get some money from a purse she had on hand. "You can buy candy with the change if you want."

Hollow accepted delighted, the atmosphere inside the apartment was somewhat dense and now he did not want to be there, besides the idea of candy was very attractive, in that sense he was still a child.

Once the vessel was gone, Sharpy went straight to the point.

"Do you like Hollow?"

"Mmm? What are you talking about?" The mantis' attitude remained calm, but a slight tremor in her voice gave her away.

"He attracts you, much more than he should." A sinister smile appeared on Sharpy's face. "A Lord in love with an insect that is not a mantis, how fun."

"Don't you dare say such blasphemy!" Orchid shouted, banging the table furiously. "I would never dare to commit such a heresy!"

"Never say never. That is one of the first things I learned when I arrived here, everything is possible. Besides, I am not going to judge her for being interested in someone who is not a mantis, and Hollow in every way is a good match. Also, did you know that children of parents of different species are not always crossbreeds? Only in 50% of cases."

"I'm not interested in that! Having children with a bug of another species is disgusting."

"That hasn't stopped you from falling in love with him."

"I'm not in love!"

"Hollow attracts you... I'm an expert in romance, but you force yourself to reject him."

"He doesn't... Well... I might be attracted to him but it's only because of the heat! Yes! that is! It's not that I have that dumb disease known as falling in love. Of course not! Simply Hollow is a very attractive, strong male and he is also nice and cute and...."

She ended up being silent when she realized what she was saying. Sharpy could only laugh out loud.

"Oh my, but what adorable. Do not be ashamed of what you feel dear, there is nothing wrong with loving someone."

"Love makes you weak and stupid!"

"That is not true, don't blame love, they are only excuses. If you have no will and you commit idiocy it is your fault. The greatest example I would give you would be Hornet. Do you know her? She is very much in love with her husband, but she does not let her feelings interfere with her work or her decisions, she is a strong person."

"I doubt it," she said, remembering the confrontation she had with the Spider Queen.

"She is very strong, we always train together and of the heaps of confrontations we have had, I have barely defeated her about four times, and one of those was because she was sick."

"Is she so strong?"

Orchid was confused, when she fought against Hornet, she didn't seem like a big deal. She was slow, with little resistance. Was she really beating Sharpy? Maybe... During her fight she was sick, which was beginning to make sense, because remembering some details, everyone seemed very worried about her.

"Anyway," Sharpy pulled her out of her thoughts. If you intend to stay here in Hallownest, I would recommend changing your thinking, you can't go through life looking at everyone as scum."

"I won't stay here to live. As soon as the prey that I have come to kill falls and I demonstrates my strength, I will return to the tribe to resume my position as Lord."

"Eh? So you weren't banished?"

"Of course not! I left my tribe myself, they had questioned my power and ability to be a Lord and that was something that I could not allow, so I left the Fungal Wastes, to look for the most powerful and impressive beast that inhabits the kingdom and hunt them, then I will return as a winner with my sisters."

"Well, good luck then." The disappointment in Sharpy's voice was noticeable. "Although I'm going to make a suggestion, don't waste your time here."

"What do you mean?"

"By tradition, the mantis remain confined in their territory, they never leave it, when you return home, you will probably never go out again, so... Why not take advantage that you are here to know everything you can? Hallownest and the adjacent kingdoms have many wonders to offer, this same city has many luxuries that you will never find in the tribe."

"I..." The mantis blushed a little. I don't want to spoil myself too much or weaken my will by submitting to so many comforts."

"Oh my Lord, that does not have to affect your strength, I allow myself enough pleasures and my strength remains the same because I always train, it is a matter of being organized and having will, there is time for everything." At that moment a knock on the door indicated that Hollow had returned. "It seems that your beloved is back."

"He is not my beloved! Henever will be!"

"Fufufuf, never, never, never. It is almost like a magical song that will end up sealing your destiny." She stood up and headed for the door. "I hope my Lord that this conversation has been helpful or at least allows you to consider things from another point of view. Meanwhile, enjoy your stay in the Hallownest Heart, there is no better place to live a romance."

Orchid already annoyed went to the door and opened it with rage, practically she did not speak to Hollow and walked to the end of the hall where she crossed her arms as she turned her back waiting for the knight to follow her.

The vessel looked at Sharpy with an expression of a question, she answered with a laugh. Then once again she placed her arms around the knight's shoulders, brought her face to his ear and whispered.

"Be patient, please... This... It's hard for her, much more than you can imagine." She narrowed the hug, sticking more to Hollow. "In the past time, it was also hard for me and my circumstances were different... Please help her. "Hollow began to feel extremely uncomfortable, Sharpy began to rub herself lightly against him. "But... Be careful... Something beautiful can come out between you two... But if it is not planned you may end up regretting it, do not touch her until the end of the month."

Sharpy suddenly released Hollow and threw him against the wall where he fell loudly. Then the bug confused looked at the mantis that looked very embarrassed as she locked herself in herapartment.

"I'm sorry! I'm truly sorry! This is difficult for me... I will compensate you, but not now, please don't look for me, until the end of the month."

Hollow stood there looking towards the closed door, in absolute confusion, although he slowly understood the complications of the heat and what it meant for females, it was really problematic and sometimes even embarrassing.

On the other side of the door, Sharpy was panting trying to turn off the warm that enveloped her body as she pressed her tail.

"But what a shameful situation. How I hate being in heat."


	13. Something like a date

The visit to Sharpy had left Orchid quite shocked. Her ideas were strange to her, but they didn't sound bad at all, however Orchid had a hard time accepting them. A part of her said that all that was wrong, but another seemed to agree. This conflict caused her pain and anguish, so she tried to distract herself thinking about something else... Other pains.

The mantis was sore after her previous battle, the editor had not been kind in her dealings with her, although that was fine, she didn't expect her to be, a worthwhile battle must be brutal and take the body to the limit. In addition, the pain helped her to mitigate her libido and left her with a certain sense of satisfaction.

However, Hollow did not agree with all the wounds that Orchid was carrying, they were not so serious but he could tell by the way the insect was moving that hurt. So when they left the apartment building, they went to a pharmacy where he bought some analgesic herbs and an ointment for wounds.

"What is that?" The curious mantis asked, watching the little balls of grass Hollow was offering.

"They are for pain, you eat one of these and for 8 hours you will not have pain, it can help you for now, then we can go to a hot spring to heal you completely"

"Oh, thanks, but I don't need them. Pain is part of being a warrior, you have to suffer it in flesh to become strong." The look Hollow gave him was indescribable, he wrote again on his board.

"Are you masochistic?"

"What!? Of course not! Pleasure is not sought through pain, that is wrong. We do not suffer for pleasure, it is to strengthen us, to turn our strong minds and do not succumb to problems or difficulties, so we do not seek pain on purpose, we only receive it As a gift if it comes to us."

"You are very weird. But more or less I understand you. I accept that you do not want to eat the analgesic herbs, but at least you should use the cream, it helps that you do not have any marks left, the scars do not help the body or the mind. When we return to the castle I will apply you the cream."

Orchid flushed at the thought of what Hollow mentioned. Her active mind imagined the knight smearing her body with the healing substance, massaging her shell firmly, touching with his hands every part of her being, pulling a thousand sighs from her, sliding his hands to touch...

She put her hands to her face trying to stifle that thought, again she felt her body burn with desire. She hoped that it would have been just a joke from Hollow, she could not endure something like that, did this bug like to torture her? Playing with her desires and making her suffer... And damn that just made him more attractive! She glanced sideways at her partner who seemed distracted looking toward the damp streets of the place. Perhaps what kind of ideas would cross his mind, what games and ways to torture her would machine his wicked mind.

The reality was that Hollow had noticed that someone was following them and he was attentive to their surroundings, waiting for an attack or something dangerous. He had a mantis wounded in his charge, he had to protect her at all costs, but without her noticing. Knowing her, If he knew she was in danger, even if heris legs were broken, she would fight the same.

He sighed somewhat worried, however it was not a situation he could not handle, it was best to move to crowded places. His original plan was to take Orchid to the house of pleasure to heal her wounds and then return to the palace, but seeing the situation, he would take her for a walk around the city, perhaps their stalkers would reveal their presence during the day. He didn't want any threat to approach the castle.

The supposed threat Hollow had detected, actually were Izuri, Soul and Shadow who watched them from a distance, there was nothing dangerous in them, or at least that was supposed.

"(There they are, sitting together on that bench. They have not fought and are calm, can we go now?)" Shadow said with visible annoyance.

"(Of course not!" Izuri said "(We must make sure that Hollow's date is a success)"

"(Exactly, there is still no kiss, no gift, no romantic scenes)" Soul seconded.

"(Great. And how are you supposed to help them have their romantic moment?)"

"(With this)" Izuri pulled out a book, Shadow looked at him with overwhelming seriousness.

"(One of Bretta's novels? Is that really your guide for romance? It's a fantasy novel! Things don't happen like in books)"

"(I don't expect them to happen exactly like here, but if we replicate some of the scenes in the book, we are sure to create the ideal environment for love to arise)" The hearts were almost seen coming out of Izuri.

"(Not that...)"

"(Relax, let the experts take charge)" Soul spoke with absolute confidence, putting an arm over his brother's shoulders)

"(You experts ?! But you haven't even had a girlfriend!)"

"(But we tried)" Izuri at that moment noticed that Hollow and Orchid had stood up and were moving away "(Ah! Quick, the targets move!)"

Izuri and Soul sneaked out of their hiding place to follow the couple, while Shadow reluctantly went after them.

Hollow still did not find out the identity of his stalkers, so he maintained caution and a serious attitude. He apparently looking relaxed, but his body was ready to take his nail and attack at any moment. He turned a corner and got into the crowd that populated the streets, his height made him stand out a little among the people, but the amount of bugs was such that it was easy to lose track. He began to hasten his pace, seeking to lose his persecutors, suddenly he moved towards a some empty area of the city, if there was an ambush, it would surely be there. He had no problems with suffering an attack, he preferred to face threats in front, he trusted his ability to reduce them.

But suddenly, someone touched his shoulder, assuming it was an attack, he didn't even have time to see who had attacked him and automatically turned around brandishing his nail. By the time he realized what had happened, Orchid was already on the ground looking at him somewhat scared, fortunately her mantis reflexes made her dodge the cut, the only damage she received was the blow that occurred when she fell on the floor. When the mantis was replenished, she only gave him an annoyed expression and said.

"Okay, I deserve it. But it's not like I wanted to touch you! Just... You were going so fast that it was hard for me to keep up and I was afraid of losing myself."

Hollow looked at her with some guilt, he had forgotten that he was not alone and had to worry about the welfare of his partner, although he would have loved to fight with his stalkers, he could not be so direct, in addition, the most urgent thing was to treat Orchid's wounds. The mantis tried to stand up by her own means, but it showed that she had some difficulty, so Hollow, without waiting for her to authorize him to touch her, took her by force and stood her next to him, also to keep her near him, he put his arm around the back of the mantis, holding her firmly.

Orchid would have wanted to protest, but the force with which he held her and her demonstration of power melted all her resistance. She could not oppose Hollow, especially having him so close.

The couple this time went to the House of Pleasure as originally planned by Hollow, but again the ignorance of the mantis and the lack of speech of the knight caused some misunderstandings.

"Oh, Hollow, the king's knight, how nice to meet you again in our humble establishment and I see that you are well accompanied." Said the elegant receptionist cricket, who shot a malicious look at the mantis that made her feel quite uncomfortable.

Bugs usually went to the House of Pleasure looking for what the place offered, pleasure for all the senses, whether in the form of good food, captivating music, beautiful dancing insects, intimate encounters or pleasant hot springs. But with respect to the latter, some insects did not go to these waters just because it were pleasant, but for medical reasons, in these cases the place had less luxurious bathrooms but equally comfortable, where the bugs could bathe and enjoy their benefits by an extremely sheap and accessible price.

These bathrooms were the ones that Hollow wanted to take to Orchid, obviously just looking to heal her battered body, but the cricket misunderstood everything, he didn't have time to write his request on his board and the cricket practically pushed them into an elegant private bathroom so that enjoy an "intimate moment", also he told him that he would make a special discount for being him, of course it was always positive to be on good terms with the knights of the king.

Hollow grumbled about how reckless that cricket had been in assuming what they were looking for, he was about to leave the room to complain when a cry of surprise from Orchid made him turn to see. The mantis had submerged in the water and seemed amazed at the liquid she was touching.

"The water is hot... And it is healing my wounds. How can it be?" She sank his body until she just left her eyes out. "It also feels so good, this... Can we stay for a while?"

The knight saw the mantis so happy and relaxed that he did not want to disturb her, the use of healing baths was for a limited time, because they were for medical reasons and not for pleasure, but if she wanted to stay for a while, he would not deny. In addition, the cricket said they would make a discount.

"Is this some wonderful invention of your king?" Hollow tilted his head at such a question, the poor woman had no idea of hot springs.

"No, these are hot springs, it are naturally hot waters that emerge from the earth in springs, they are not very common, so far four of these wells have been discovered including this one, not even in the castle we have one. It is a gift from the Nature for us" How nice that the magic board was waterproof.

"There are none in the mantis territory," said the mantis with some regret, moving her claws playfully in the water. "And why have my wounds healed so fast?"

"The hot springs have healing properties, if you arrive on time they can heal even the most deadly wound, in addition to many diseases, unfortunately they do not cure fatigue or anemia, for these problems there is no choice but to eat and rest."

Orchid asked a few more questions, and although she was impatient to have to wait for Hollow to write the answers on his board, they were both able to have a fairly fluid conversation, perhaps the first one they had ever had. The knight was delighted with the change of attitude of the mantis, almost seemed a reasonable person, apparently the conversation with Sharpy had helped her a lot. The truth Orchid still did not accept those strange ideas about respecting the "weak" bugs, but what she agreed with was that she should take advantage of her stay in Hallownest, learn and enjoy everything she could.

While both bugs enjoyed their talk, outside the business a group of vessels was causing an increasingly notable uproar.

"...........!" Izuri complained absolutely outraged.

"We don't want to use the facilities, we are in a research project" Soul translated on his board.

"I don't care what excuse you have, if you don't pay they can't come in," the cricket declared sharply.

"(Shadow tell him something!)" Izuri demanded from his brother.

"(I like the color of the walls)" Answered the vessel knowing they couldn't hear it.

"(Shadow! Come here and help us! And take those things off, you look scary!)" Shadow unlike Izuri and Soul was an official knight of King Big, and as such he had a reputation to maintaining. Therefore, to maintain anonymity in case he was involved in some scandal, he had put a black hood on top of it, hiding his face, only part of his horns were exposed by the openings he had on his sides.

"(I don't support this ridiculous plan, you will only cause problems)"

"(But this is for Hollow!)" Soul reproached him.

"(I doubt he supports your idiocy)"

"(Leave him Soul, Shadow does not want Hollow to be happy, we will take care of this)" And after saying this he went to the cricket to face him once more, he would enter that place even if it was by force.

But the vessel did not expect that the cricket's patience was over and had called for security, so before he could even stand in front of the insect, a huge Goliath beetle got in his way threatening him with his club.

"(Soul!)" Secreamed Izuri, obviously only his two brothers could hear him.

What followed was very fast. Soul was not going to allow anyone to harm Izuri, especially since within the brothers, he was one of those who had less fighting skills (if not to say any), so that the vessel got between both bugs, quickly drew his nail and with a touch left his opponent paralyzed.

Soul was a warrior who used a fighting style based on the use of magic, something he had developed on his own, even though almost no one had supported his ambitions. However, thanks to Hollow's spirits, he had become a skilled wizard specialized in provoking states. Although his abilities in wielding a nail were not particularly remarkable, the use of magic gave him a great advantage, especially since most of the bugs did not know very well how to deal with it, as was the case with this beetle.

The burly guard shouted in fright at not knowing what was happening to him, the scandal he armed attracted other guards, who between terrified and furious, lunged at the two vessels causing a great uproar, which unfortunately was heard from the Inside the establishment, causing the customers to alter, making the situation worse.

Inside the private bathroom of Hollow and Orchid, the knight had managed to convince the mantis to play with him and now they both laughed throwing water like two small children, they were really having a very pleasant time but this was interrupted by What was happening outside.

Hollow as soon as he felt that something was wrong, came out of the water and took his nail willing to fight against any threat that would attack the place. Perhaps he was on vacation, but that would not stop him of protecting the kingdom if necessary.

Orchid saw him emerge from the water like a hurricane, demonstrating all his power and splendor. She felt a warmth settle in her tail when she saw her beloved knight in such a display of power, and was dumbfounded when she saw him shoot out at an incredible speed leaving behind ethereal pink crystals that faded after a few seconds.

Meanwhile, out of the house of pleasure, Shadow was with the nerves full of skin watching the fight, to his regret his brothers moved very fast and he found no opening to enter and intervene, however his opening came in the form of his Worst fear, Hollow broke into the battle and attacked everyone using the abyss shriek. That was his method of removing all the enemies, perhaps it was a little inconsiderate to attack the guilty and innocent alike, but they were in the house of pleasure, if someone was very hurt, a bath would suffice and they would get well.

Shadow at that moment found his opening. He adjusted his hood well and ran towards the fight, took Izuri and Soul and walked away with them before his brother discovered them.

Hollow could only see a dark shadow that was moving away from the place, of course he was going to follow them, he was about to leave when Orchid's voice stopped him.

"Wait!" He turned to see the mantis. "Don't leave without me!" At that moment she blushed at the thought of what she had said and tried not to sound so desperate. "I don't know how to return and it would be a problem if I lost you."

Orchid had reason to fear, to be in foreign land, in a place where she had trouble orienting herself, full of unknown insects that did not understand her way of being, it was something terrifying. But her pride prevented her from demonstrating her insecurity, at least openly. Hollow could perceive through the mantis posture how scared she was, her claws gathered and her antennas in alert denoted her nervousness, and this only caused him an immense desire to protect her, at that moment he even wanted to hug her. But knowing her, he knew that action would not be well received, so discreetly trying to hide his emotions approached her. At that time the female took the opportunity to pass him blackboard that had left forgotten in the bathroom.

"What happened here?" Orchid said looking at the beetles lying on the floor, Hollow was about to write an answer when, for a change, the cricket interrupted him.

"Oh, you don't know how I sorry, I really feel very sorry, for no reason we wanted to interrupt your intimate encounter with your lady, but this was an issue that escaped our hands, but don't worry, we'll leave your stay free for the inconvenience, I'm really sorry for this, how embarrassing..."

Hollow was at the time wondering what "intimate encounter" meant, while Orchid was dying of shame and covered her face. At that moment the mantis just wanted to shout and kill that impertinent bug, but she didn't want to get into trouble, so she took the knight by the hand and dragged him away from the House of Pleasure without saying a word.

Both bugs now walked through the wet streets of the city, Orchid looked extremely nervous, or at least Hollow interpreted it as nerves, because he saw no reason to be embarrassed, for his part he was relaxed, although somewhat worried about his partner. Suddenly she stopped and looked directly at him, the knight only tilted his head in question, then the mantis spoke.

"Doesn't it bother you what happened in that hot spring house?" She had to wait for Hollow to write his answer.

"You mean what happened in the House of Pleasure?"

"House of Pleasure? Is that place called that?" There was a certain nervousness in her voice.

"Yes, it is a place where wealthy insects delight their senses" then he noticed that the mantis was somewhat pale "Are you alright?"

"Please, Hollow! How can you be so calm? That cricket thought you and I were..." When he noticed the confused face Hollow showed, she felt she was in love "Don't look at me with that innocent face! You know what I am talking about!"

"To be honest I have no idea"

"Do you like to see me humiliated, right? Is it some weird fixation of yours? Do you want to hear from my mouth the blasphemies that cricket thought? Do you want me to hint at that dirty possibility? Did you take me to that place with any double intention? What do you want of me?"

"I just want to make you happy"

Orchid felt her heart melt when she read those words. He just wanted to make her happy? Did that knight really harbor such a pure desire in his heart? No, that could only be an act, he wanted her with other intentions, because no insect would be interested in the welfare of another without a hidden motive, much less one outside their family and foreigner. Although Hollow had proved to be very noble in many senses, he had never asked for anything in return and was always aware of her. Then confused and overwhelmed by her emotions she burst.

"Liar! I don't want to see you!"

And after shouting, she ran away until she lost herself in the crowd.

Again that mantis with confusing behavior was acting weird. Why did she have to be this way? What had he done to piss her off this time? He had no time to lose himself in those ramblings, that fool was gone and not knowing how to act in the city she could end up getting into trouble. He began to run in the direction he had seen her leave, if he hurried he might be able to reach her, but among the tumult of bugs in which he was stuck it was difficult to move forward. He tried to make his way among the people as quickly as possible, when in a moment when he did not see where he was going collided with someone.

The knight apologized with a gesture and looked at the bug he had encountered, realizing that it was Orchid, who looked ashamed and didn't look him in the eye.

"Thinking about it, if I walk away from you I will end up lost, so first you will take me to the castle and then I will get angry and run away dramatically."

At that moment a grunt coming from the mantis stomach echoed between them.

"Changing plans, we'll go get something to eat, then you'll take me to the castle and then I'll get angry and run away dramatically."

Hollow went blank a few moments somewhat confused by the mantis behavior, but when he finally processed what had happened, he let out an adorable silent laugh that moved Orchid.

Her heat had her mind made a mess and she was having explosive emotional outbursts, she had realized that she was acting like an idiot and wanted to apologize, but she didn't know how to do it and had only managed to act like an idiot again, but at least Hollow had found it funny, he might forget the problem and forgive her without asking.

The bug then decided to take the mantis to eat. They could surely have a feast in the castle but he wanted her to try some delicacies that could only be found in the City of Tears. He didn't bother to take her to any expensive restaurant. Why? if in the palace they could entertain them with the best delicacies and the best attention, that's why they went to a street food stall.

In general almost nobody sold food in the streets due to the obvious problem that it could get wet, however there was a traditional snack that could only be found in the city of tears, the musguin. It consisted of a piece of meat wrapped in sweet moss strung on a stick. To enjoy it, it had to be fresh and there was no better way to keep the moss fresh than with the natural rain of the city.

For Orchid it was a surprise to try that snack, it would never have occurred to her in his ler to think that the moss could taste good, she had once tasted the mosskin meat, but they ate the meat, the moss was thrown away.

Both enjoyed a pleasant moment in silence eating their snacks, although Hollow did not eat much because he had eat a lot of candy at Sharpy's house, unlike Orchid that almost did not eat. However, their peace would soon be interrupted by a couple of rather problematic bugs.

"(Please leave them alone!)" Shadow yelled extremely annoying "(What was not enough with the problems you caused in the House of Pleasure?)"

"(That was ... A mistake of calulus)" Izuri excused himself.

"(This time we are in a public sector, we don't have to pay to be here, we can help them perfectly)" Soul supported him.

"(Of course, help them... And I can know what the plan is this time? Why are we above this building? How are we going to help them from so far away?)"

"(Ah, we are going to replicate one of the scenes in this book)" Soul extracted a copy of one of Bretta's novels "(In this beautiful scene, the knight takes the maiden and moves her away from the party where she is being courted by the ruin beetle that desires her only for her fortune. Then he takes her to the gardens, where under a withered tree, he asks her to reveal herself against her destiny and escape with him, because he will protect her from all evil. Then she cries saying that that would go against the designs of the goddess they worship, the knight then confesses his feelings and tells her that a true love will be blessed by the goddess, and as if the deity had heard them, the dead tree revive and drop its petals on them)"

"(Well, as far as I know, nobody wants to marry that mantis)"

"(Don't say nonsenses Shadow)" Izuri complained "(Obviously what we are going to do is replicate the scene spreading petals on them, that will create the ideal romantic environment for their feelings to flourish)" The container vessel in a rather dramatic pose.

"(This can't be happening)" Shadow put a hand to his head in exasperation "(Do I have to tell you why your plan is stupid?)"

"(You always see everything bad because you are a bitter male who does not like romance)" Soul looked indignant.

"(Look, you better stop this circus now, this won't work out because...)"

"(Silence that they come there)."

Indeed, Hollow and Orchid walked happily down the street and were about to pass under the building where the group of vessels was waiting for them, Hollow had already finished eating, but the mantis still had a stick of Musguis,

"(Get ready Soul, we must calculate the exact moment at which to throw the petals)"

"(Hey, stop with this, I tell you that..."

"(Everything is coldly calculated Izuri, I'm ready)"

"(Listen to me!)"

"(We're about, start countdown)"

"(Hey!)"

"(Three, two, one...)"

Soul opened the jar where he had the flower petals he had bought in a gift shop, scattered through the air, but as soon as they came into contact with the rain, they got soaked and fell like rocks on the bugs, even some of them were stuck with others and by the weight acquired with the water, when they fell they threw the musguis from the hands of Orchid. Then the mantis looked with sorrow as that delicious snack ended on the ground and then was trampled by the bugs that were walking around.

"(What happened?)" The three-horned vessel seemed confused.

"(What happened? You didn't listen to me, that happened!)" Shadow looked furious.

"(And what did you want to tell us?)" Soul asked innocently.

"(That the water was going to wet the petals! How did you not think about it? It was pure logic! Because I suppose that in the novel the knight did not confess to the maiden in the rain. Or am I wrong?)"

Both brothers looked at each other and both felt like stupid not thinking about such a simple detail.

Meanwhile, down Orchid was still looking at the wasted food with sorrow, then Hollow approached her and caught her attention by banging his pencil against the board, when the Lord looked at him he showed him the message he had written.

"I can buy you another one if you want"

"Don't bother, I'm not hungry anymore, let's just go back to the castle."

Hollow noticed the mantis somewhat annoyed, but he said nothing, at least this time he had not had one of his rare mood swings, that was good, and he had to admit that she was behaving quite reasonably that day. She was only average crazy but he could deal with that. What really worried him was that it seemed that someone was following them, searching by all means to ruin their "date". As soon as he discovered the culprit he would make them pay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was ready a while ago, but I didn't feel like translating it. The next one is quite long, so it might take some time, besides it has "that kind of scene"


	14. Torments and Pleasures

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter XL

The drops continued to fall unstoppably on the city, and Orchid was beginning to feel impatient, the wonder of all this water had been pleasant at first, but she was already getting bored of the situation. Definitely, even with all its progress and magnificent constructions, she would not like to live there.

The mantis was concentrated in her musings, carefully comparing the realities of her tribe and this city, perhaps she could implement some improvements when she returned home. At the moment she had a lot to think and plan. However, her reverie was such that she did not see where she was walking and ended up tripping over a small bug making him fall to the ground.

When Orchid realized what happened, she noticed that the bug she had thrown was a weaver. The bug looked at her with some annoyance

"You should be more careful, you can cause an accident if you don't pay attention where you are going."

And after saying these words, he turned around and entered a building with many stores.The spider was never rude and he was right in what he had told Orchid, but she was not going to easily recognize it, mainly because he was a weaver, a member of the people with whom her tribe had been at war since Ancient times, and she was a lord. She could not ignore such disrespect! Therefore she followed him to the store where he had entered. Hollow was terrified when he saw her partner run towards a commercial building and he had no choice but to follow her.

The mantis entered the store, and she suddenly forgot her anger when she saw what they sold there, the place was full of fabrics and crafts made of yarn, the most beautiful she had ever seen. There were embroidered patterned sheets, curtains with intricate floral designs, tablecloths, capes, cushions, even rag toys. She knew weavers were dedicated to that, but she had never had a chance to look closely at her work. At that, another weaver came to attend to her.

"Good afternoon. Can I help you with something?"

"Uh... No... I just..." If the beauty of the fabrics surprised her, the fact that a weaver spoke so kindly to her even more.

"Just look? Okay, if you need anything, let me know" that being said, she withdrew.

It didn't take long for Hollow to arrive on the scene and was met with a stunned mantis looking at everything as if she couldn't believe it. He caught her attention by tapping his pencil against the magic board, immediately his partner turned to see him and exclaimed:

"Hollow!" A spider has spoken to me!"

"What's so strange about that?"

"A spider spoke to me! I am a mantis."

"If you are a customer, it doesn't matter if you are a mantis or a beetle, they will treat you the same, for them the important thing is to sell. Also, sometimes mantises come from outside Hallownest, and these mantises do not have conflicts with spiders."

"Is seriously?! Mantises that get along with spiders?"

Hollow sighed at such a display of ignorance and naivete, he had a lot to teach this poor mantis. He considered the situation a bit and thought that perhaps the first step in teaching Orchid to live in community was that she learn to appreciate other bugs.

"Why don't you take a look at the store? If you like something, let me know."

Hollow hoped that appreciating the work of the weavers she would begin to see them as good creatures and not as hindrances, which was the vision she seemed to have of any bug that was not a mantis.

Orchid walked around the store amazed by everything she saw, she never saw such beautiful fabrics, not even the actual cloaks they wore had such quality... Although they were actually quite old, perhaps when it were new it looked better, although... Where did these come from? The mantises did not weave, they had no way of obtaining thread, would they have obtained the fabric from the weavers themselves? When did that happen? Perhaps there was even the possibility that in the distant past both races had had a good relationship. Again she felt insecure and stunned, again her beliefs and customs were threatened by foreign ideas that seemed to make much more sense than her own.

Suddenly the mantis found a plush-looking carpet, she could not resist touching the object, and feeling its softness. She soon rubbed her face against it. It felt so good, so soft, as nice as the sheets on her bed, she loved that feeling, in fungal wastes there was nothing so soft, she would happily sleep on this carpet.

Suddenly she noticed a slight laugh and when she turned to see, she noticed that there were at least 6 spiders looking at her with a funny face. Immediately she turned away from the carpet with a red face not knowing what to do, at least no weaver said anything, they simply retired to continue with their work, although she thought she heard a "how adorable" from one of them.

Orchid was quietly mentally beating herself, she couldn't get mad at anyone, it was her fault for acting improperly in public, what would her sisters say if they saw her, she would definitely lose her position as Lord, but her humiliation seemed to not end yet, because Hollow was also there looking at her with a funny face, but at least he try to hide it. Then he came up and wrote again on his blackboard

"Do you like that carpet?"

"Uh... This... It feels good, but I'm not interested. Why do I want a silly carpet? I can't take it with me or anything... And... And... The color is ugly and..."

"We also have it in blue," said a weaver, dropping from the ceiling and hanging upside down next to Orchid.

The mantis winced at the impression and took a few seconds to respond

"No thanks..."

"Well, I was just saying," Once she delivered her message, she went up her thread to the second floor of that store.

"Oh look, the store has a second floor," said the mantis, trying to hide her shame.

"It has several floors." Hollow played along. "Do you want to see what's up there?"

"Er... yes, of course."

Neither mentioned the incident that had happened, which Orquídea was very grateful for, she was having a hard time dealing with the shame and heat on her face, so without saying a word, both began to explore the upper floors of the huge building owned by the spiders.

In a place so full of people and activity, it was difficult to catch someone suspicious, in addition to Hollow having already forgotten the previous incidents and he was somewhat distracted. Therefore, he did not realize that they were being followed again, Izuri and Soul still didn't give up.

"(Why don't we just give up at once?)" Shadow now looked quite discouraged "(The last two attempts ended in disaster. What makes you believe that it will work now?)"

"(The third is the winner)" Izuri replied with absolute confidence.

"(Besides, I don't see any way that the plan this time goes wrong)" Soul added.

"(And what is the plan?)"

"(We will replicate another scene from the novel that....)"

"(Again with the famous book)."

"(Do not interrupt)" Izuri looked at him reprovingly "(As I was saying, this time we will replicate a much simpler scene from the book. That moment when the maiden strolling through the commercial area of her kingdom loses her handkerchief, then distressedly tells her fiancé who at that time was going with her, but the damned man despises her concern and ignores her, so the knight who also went with them, spends the money he had for his lunch that day in a luxurious handkerchief for his beloved, that scene moved me a lot)"

"(It will not have the impact of the book. Those two have already eaten and Hollow is not a poor recruit like the one in the novel, he has a fixed salary, social security, he is the brother of the king and the captain of the royal guard. For him buying her a handkerchief is nothing)" Izuri and Soul gave him such a deadly look that Shadow felt intimidated "(I'm just saying)."

"(Weeeeeell, the first step for our plan now is to make Orchid lose her handkerchief)"

"(She doesn't have a handker...)" Shadow interrupted.

"(And the fabric that is tied around the waist? Maybe it is not a handkerchief, but for practical purposes it works)."

"(Yes but ....)"

"(It's time to work Soul!)"

"(Let's go Izuri!)"

It was unfortunate that none of the three vessels knew the importance of the Orchid's fabric, they did not know that it was impregnated in the extract of a herb that neutralized pheromones, nor were they aware of the disaster they were about to unleash.

The couple of bugs had already reached the top floor of the fabric shop and they were entertaining themselves quite a bit, since on this floor what was exhibited were toys, lots of handmade rag dolls and plushys, they could even see a weaver delicately sewing a ladybug plushy in the same place. The mantis was quite surprised with what she saw, each doll was beautiful, delicate and adorable, it made her want to hug them. But despite that she did not understand why it were manufactured.

"Hollow What are these things for?"

"The toys? Well, it are for playing, children entertain themselves with it, although some people also use it as decorations, it are quite beautiful"

Both uses sounded strange for Orchid. The mantises did not decorate their houses, each object that could be found in their huts provided some practical use, having something just because it looks beautiful seemed strange to her. As for using a doll to play, she didn't understand that either. The fun of the children in the tribe consisted of hunting simulations and some practice fights. What use was a doll to them? But still, she couldn't help but be drawn to those adorable heaps of cloth and padding, in fact there was a tiktik plushy she was looking with longing eyes.

"Would you like to have that stuffed animal?" Hollow asked, slipping his hands over to his wallet covertly.

"What?! Of course not... well... It's cute, but I don't need it... I mean, I wouldn't mind having it, but it's not like I wanted it."

Hollow sighed for the umpteenth time that day. He still did not understand why that mantis could not be more direct with her wishes, but he was already learning to deal with her, she usually wanted the opposite of what she said, which in fact always gave her away it was her eyes and the tone of her voice.

While both bugs were distracted looking at the dolls, the three vessels had already reached them and was lurking behind a shelf. Now came the difficult part of their plan, if Hollow discovered them they would surely get in trouble, but fortunately for them, they had the Soul's magic. Of all of them he was the one who had the best management of this, having achieved spells and feats that no one else could, as in this particular case, when with a small soul strike he burned the tips of the Orchid's fabric causing it to loosen. Then Izuri quickly ran and took the fabric trying not to be discovered, but sadly that was not possible, a scream from Orchid stopped him in the middle of the road and a shot from Hollow's soul knocked him to the ground, again the mission had been a failure.

Hollow grabbed Izuri furious at what he had done, the poor vessel was trembling with fear, surely he would not save himself from punishment, but if he was going to fall, everyone would fall with him.

"(Shadow and Soul are with me too! In fact Shadow was the mastermind behind all this...)"

"(Liar bitch!)" Shadow said coming out from behind a shelf with Soul holding by a horn.

"(Yes, Shadow planned all this)" Soul seemed to have colluded with his brother

"(Do you think I don't know you well enough not to know that you are lying?)" Hollow said firmly, Shadow sighed with relief at this "(Don't feel so calm Shadow, you should have stopped or betrayed them, you are as guilty as them)" The vessel looked at him incredulously "(Now I'm going to...)"

He couldn't even finish the sentence, as a ruckus behind him alerted him that something was wrong, and by the time he turned around, he saw in horror a group of insects slowly approaching Orchid. For her part, she looked extremely tense and held in her arms some stuffed animals that she intended to throw at her attackers, although she was aware that they were not the most lethal weapons, but if she ended up hurting a large number of bugs, she would get into trouble, even if it were for self defense.

The group of males, attracted by the pheromones of the mantis was getting closer, and the mantis began to panic, it was then that the help came in a somewhat unexpected way for her.

There was a kind of unwritten code among the females to provide support to any girl who was going through her heat, so regardless of the species, if any female was in danger, the others would help her and that was what happened in this case. Without warning, the females weavers and some of the store's customers jumped on the males trying to hold them back so they wouldn't get close to the mantis.

Orchid recoiled in amazement at what she was seeing, the males squirming beneath the women, who used all their strength to help her... To her, an unknown mantis, she almost felt her heart break with emotion, however the words of a weaver brought her out of her stupor.

"What are you waiting for? Run! Get out of the building! The rain from outside will neutralize your pheromones, fast... We can no longer ..."

She could not say more, the beetle she was trying to hold released from her grasp and ran towards the mantis, but before he could reach her a sharp blow knocked him back, the attack was not able to cause him great damage, it just left him a little stunned.

The attack came from the knight, who had placed himself in front of Orchid in a protective attitude. This time the mantis didn't think about it anymore, she swallowed her pride and ran away.

She was a powerful creature, capable of dealing with the most terrible enemies, but even she was not able to deal with such a quantity of bugs that went after her, now she ran through the corridors of that huge building holding back the tears of rage and fear . She, a Lord, lowered to the category of a prey, her sisters would be ashamed.... Well, if they were in her situation she would probably do the same, at least this thought made her feel a little better. Also, never in her life had she put herself in the position of a prey, and now she could understand them better, keeping a cool head and not panicking was something that required great mental strength. Did the prey really have to face such a difficult situation? They no longer seemed so despicable to her.

The Lord ran through the corridors throwing every object she caught in her way trying to delay her pursuers, as almost everything there were shelves too big to handle or products made of silk, nobody got hurt, they only ended up entangling their legs and falling to the ground and because the effect of pheromones clouded their reason, they had more difficulty than normal in untangling their legs.

Orchid had already gone down three floors of shelves and in each of them she had seen males eager to take her and merciful females trying to stop them, but it was close to finishing their torture, in front of her was the exit door, wide open, and in the middle a group of males blocking the way.

Her instincts led her to escape to the opposite side, but reason told her that her salvation was in front, behind that nightmare of aggressive bugs. But she could not stop to think what to do, behind her she could hear how some males that had escaped the grip of the females were going down with great speed. Once again she turned her face towards the wall of insects that blocked the door, and in that a huge beetle intervened.

Orchid looked at him terrified thinking that now she should fight him to escape, but the insect instead ran towards her as everyone, lay down on the floor and yelled at her.

"Use me as support and jump!"

This was an insect of a species incompatible with mantises, they could never have children together, therefore, Orchid's hormones did not affect him. The mantis looked at him gratefully, then ran towards him, climbed on top and took advantage of his height to jump and thus dodge the horde of vermin.

She landed on the other side and without waiting for any instructions, she ran outside, she ran desperately until she felt the raindrops fall on her body, only then she dared to look back and saw the group of bugs standing outside the store looking at her with a mixture of stupor and shame. There was a long, sultry silence that lasted a few seconds before the insects slowly returned inside the tent, some whispering apologies and others just too embarrassed to say anything.

When all the insects had withdrawn, only Hollow and his brothers were present, they saw her in distress and concern. Orchid stood still, stoically, showing no sign of feeling, although if it weren't raining, the vessels could make out the tears streaming down her faces.

The knight, somehow sensing that something was wrong, approached her and as soon as he was within reach, he was caught in the arms of the mantis that clung to him desperately. Hollow had no way of asking what was wrong with her, but upon hearing her gasps and broken voice, he knew there was no need to do so, his only duty at the moment was to put his arms around her and hold her firmly until she calmed down.

.............................

"So all this mess that happened in the weavers business area was your fault, including Orchid's psychological damage," Big said, looking at the three vessels sternly.

"I didn't do anything," Shadow said, frightened by the gaze of his king.

"And doing nothing has turned out to be as damaging as doing something," the monarch stated sharply, rising from his throne. "What had happened is serious and therefore cannot go unpunished."

Some servants who were in the throne room witnessing the scene trembled in their places, Big was known to be a kind and judicious king, but they knew that when necessary, he was capable of being terrifying. Although those angry words were not going addressed to them, they felt the same terror as those who would receive the sentence. The vessels could be seen shaking with fear, at least two of them, because curiously Izuri looked very calm.

"(Izuri, aren't you worried about the punishment he is going to give us?)" Soul whispered to his brother.

"(No, my body and mind are strengthened, I am able to endure whatever, it does not matter if he sends me to do forced labor to the mines, or if he gives me 50 lashes or if he leaves me without dessert, I can endure it)."

"For the next two weeks, you'll have to help old Mark with the castle's weapons inventory."

"(WHAAAAAAT!)" The vessel screeched. (You can't do this to us! That's too cruel! Please my king, I beg you!)" Izuri knelt in front of Big, but he only kept his stony gaze.

"The sentence is passed, now get out of my sight."

"(I thought you could handle anything)" Shadow said in a mocking tone.

"(But taking inventory is the most boring task in the world, it is worse than being a month without dessert, and enduring Mark's boring stories is a torture)" Izuri sobbed "(Please! Nooooooo)"

"Guards."

A pair of armored insects taked the vessel and began dragging him out of the courtroom, his brothers walked behind him without any resistance to punishment. Nearby, Orchid and Hollow looked at the scene, he with some anger, still not forgiving them for all the problems they had caused, and she in absolute confusion. How could taking an inventory be such a horrible punishment? She didn't have too much time to worry about that anyway, as the king approached them to talk a bit.

"Orchid, I really regret what happened, please do not be angry with them, I am sure that after their punishment they will reconsider their actions."

"It's okay, it doesn't matter anymore, I just... I want to go rest in my room, I feel exhausted, I've had enough."

Big glanced at the mantis for any injury or problem that needed to be treated, but he saw nothing troubling, just a few new scars that he didn't remember seeing. For most of the bugs it would have gone unnoticed, but the vessel had a photographic memory and injuries to people were something that caused him concern.

"These scars are new."

"Eh? yes, but they are nothing. Thanks to the hot springs, it closed completely, they no longer cause problems, except for the aesthetic, but that's not..."

"(I have a pot of scar cream!)" Hollow said suddenly pulling out what he had bought a while earlier. Orchid open her eyes wide.

"Wonderful," Big said, taking the cream. "I'll go apply it now." The mantis widened her eyes even more at what she heard.

"(Wait, I wanted to apply it, I bought it)."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of her," he said, taking her guest firmly and leaving the audience room to guide her to her bedroom.

"(Hey, I said I would, plus she's mine... I mean...)" He felt a little confused by what he had said and didn't quite know how to explain himself.

"Okay, okay, we will both put it on. Happy?"

At the time, Orchid should have been the happiest, although she was too stunned to assume it, or even to protest, she was having trouble spinning any coherent phrase at the time. Meanwhile, without them knowing, the servitude that had witnessed the scene was already beginning to formulate various theories and stories that would be the gossip of the next week, Ogrim was going to suffer a lot.

Orchid took a long time to react to what was happening around her, partly because she hoped that "applying the cream on her "was just a joke from the king, she had already noticed that he had a somewhat particular sense of humor. But she was wrong, all this was very serious. She was convinced when they laid her gently on her bed and closed the door behind them.

The insect then sat down and looked at them with fear. What the hell were they going to do to her? Considering her situation she was in absolute danger, they were probably the two most powerful insects in the entire kingdom, they could do with whatever they wanted and she would have no choice but to submit.

Apparently the expression of anguish she put on was very noticeable, because immediately Big stroked her head reassuringly.

"Calm down Orchid, we're only going to apply an ointment to you, I promise you won't burn"

The burning was what worried her the least really.

"Lay down please".

The king said those words in a kind but firm way, it seemed to radiate an overwhelming power, to the point that the mantis had no choice but to obey. The last time she'd felt this way overpowered was before the Pale King.

Hollow was the one who took the first step since Big had given him the cream, he took out a generous portion that began to spread across her chest. Orchid sighed as she felt his hands touch her. So many times she had fantasized about something like that, but she never expected it to actually happen, his touch was very relaxing, soft but at the same time firm, she couldn't stop a sigh escaping from her throat.

"Oh? Do you like it?" Big asked, looking at her with interest.

The mantis blushed at the monarch's gaze and, shamefaced, she tried to get up to get out of there, but powerful hands took her and returned her to her place lying on the bed.

"We're not done yet," Big said with a certain note of amusement in his voice.

The mantis' attitude made him laugh a lot, especially since she made strange expressions, but it were not expressions of disgust or pain, and she didn't complain about anything either, so Big supposed that everything was fine, they were just applying cream. What's wrong with that?

Meanwhile, Orchid was torn between her mantis pride and pleasure, she was a prisoner of that powerful monarch. At first she tried to struggle, but that only made Big to hold her more tightly while her silent knight massaged her body. She could not move, she could not escape, she could only lie there and submit to their delicious torture. Her breathing began to shake as Hollow's hands went down her body, all that stimulation made her shake in place, but Big did not give her respite and kept her firm in her place, this only made her worse.

She let out a loud groan as Hollow brushed her tail, it was her most sensitive area, and she was so aroused that it was almost painful. Both vessels looked at her with some concern.

"Are you Ok? Does something hurt?" Big immediately released his hold and Hollow pulled away from her.

Orchid snorted annoyed, this was a bad joke, after they put her in such a state they denied their caresses. How could they be so cruel? She needed to be touched, her heat exacerbated her senses to the point that she felt she was going to die if they didn't please her. She was so desperate that she was willing to beg for it if necessary.

"I'm... well... please... don't stop..."

Both brothers looked at each other somewhat confused, the mantis was acting very strange, but there was something in her voice that tempted them to fulfill her wishes. For reasons they did not know, they liked to touch her, they were not very clear why, they did not know if it was because of the fun it was, for the strange but pleasant sounds that the insect made, or if it was for that strange feeling that they were doing something forbidden. They did not see anything wrong in the situation but they could not get rid of the idea, however, Orchid never complained or told them to stop, therefore, there was nothing wrong, right?

Hollow eager to please Orchid, took out another slice of cream and began to spread it on the tail of the mantis, who immediately began to moan suggestively as she swayed to the rhythm of the caresses, although the sensation was so intense that it cost her endure it. She had the intention of directing her claws towards Hollow to stop him, but again she saw herself prey to Big, who with one hand held her two limbs to the bed, but not content with that, he directed his free hand towards the shell of the female and began to caress her.

Hollow growled somewhat jealous that his brother also dared to touch her, he wanted to be the only one that made her happy, but he did not dare to protest, even under that situation Big still had more authority than him, so he just massaged Orchid's tail briskly, he would make her moan more than Big.

Both bugs had very different ways of touching the mantis, Hollow was more energetic and wild, his stimuli were intense, exciting the insect to the point that it was almost difficult to breathe, while Big was soft and tender, his firm but delicate touch relaxed extracting sighs at every moment.

Orchid instinctively opened her legs, exposing herself, ready to be taken, at that moment she had already stopped thinking logically, she was overwhelmed by the sensations that ran through her body, her nature and her state led her to desperately want to consummate the act, but it seemed that this would not happen, the fact that none of them were attracted to their pheromones led her to think that they were incompatible, they should not want her, but apparently that did not prevent them from wanting to play with her.

The moans of the mantis increased in intensity along with her sensations, without touching her entrance in the least they had led her to ecstasy. She he felt her tail throb with pleasure as she shook herself enjoying the feeling of being subdued, losing absolute control of her body and only surrender to the will of others, only worry about feeling, being pampered by those two handsome males.

The throbbing of her entrance and the heat she felt began to suffocate her, she was about to explode, her gasps grew faster, a current of pleasure enveloped her and she involuntarily arched her back as she moaned in a maximum sample of her feeling.

"(Oh, that wet substance has come out of her tail)" Hollow said looking at the area with interest.

"Orchid? Hey... Are you okay?" Big seemed more concerned about the mantis, for after shaking so hard, she was now lying languidly on the bed, looking away at him. "Hollow, we broke her."

"(How did we break her!? Is that even possible? Orchid?)"

The mantis suddenly seemed to react and looked at both males sleepily, she should be furious and rebuke them, but she didn't feel like it, she was too satisfied and happy for that, instead she just answered.

"I'm fine".

"Ah I'm glad. Do you need something?" Big stroked her face gently, and she replied with absolute docility.

"Just sleep."

Hollow looked at both of them feeling a certain anger, Orchid was never that friendly with him, just touching her shoulder could trigger a very aggressive attack, while with Big she was friendly and kind, she was even able to trust him to the point to sleep on his lap. Why couldn't she do the same with him?

It was then that she looked at him, and his heart melted. There was such sweetness in those eyes, her usually cold countenance, worthy of a predator, now only exuded tenderness and peace. She looked like the most docile creature in the world, the type of being that he wish to protect with all his power. Hollow was an innate guardian, a knight, and his desire to protect was something that manifested itself in all aspects of his life, including how he loved, although he was not aware of this.

At that moment he simply let himself be carried away by a spontaneous impulse in which he approached the mantis and gently kissed her cheek. When he realized what he had done, he expected a slap or some worse attack, but all he received was a look of surprise and the hint of a blush on the insect, he whispered feeling a spark of joy inside, apparently she was finally accepting him.

"Hollow, let her rest now and don't bother her," Big said from the door of the room, apparently at some point he had retired to give them their space.

"(Ok)" He headed towards the mantis "(Rest Orchid, I'll see you tomorrow)"

Hollow went to the door where his brother was waiting for him with a rather particular look.

"(What?)"

"And that kiss?"

"(What?... wThat... The kiss?... I... Well...)" Suddenly Hollow began to get nervous.

"Hahahahaha, but how cute."

"(Hey! Don't bother!)"

In the room meanwhile, Orchid looked at the ceiling wondering what she was doing with her life. How had she allowed that to happen? The easy way out would have been to blame her heat, and both insects for taking advantage of her in that situation, but... Did she really have so little willpower? When given the opportunity to stop, she was not able to do it, in truth she was not as strong as she claimed to be, it was something that she had conserved long after her conversation with Sharpy, true strength involved much more than a powerful body adapted to battle.

She looked to the side where there was a somewhat disturbing painting of the Lord of Shades hanging on the wall, the deity seemed to look at her with mocking eyes, which only made her feel even more frustrated.

"It's not my fault! I did my best to avoid this!" She cried.

Then she turned her back on the painting and buried her head in a pillow, she herself knew that what she had said was a vile lie.

..............................................

In a corner of Fungal Wastes, a female mantis watched the area with a searching gaze. Her posture and her senses were on alert while she searched in every nook or shadow for the presence of the one she was waiting for. She sighed in relief when she saw her sister appear, she looked somewhat exhausted, but in a good enough mood, although knowing what she had been doing was obvious.

"Lily, what are you doing here? As I recall it was not your turn to watch." Lavender said with some surprise.

"I changed places with Mercy, I needed to talk to you alone and this seemed like the best time."

"Really? And is it something very urgent? I really don't feel like dealing with government matters now," she said, bringing a hand to the center of her tail. "Maybe Tach is not handsome but he knows how to do his job"

"And that's exactly what I wanted to talk about."

"What? What happened? Do you see any problems for Tach as the father of my children?"

"No no, he is perfect, he is strong and healthy, he will surely give you a powerful offspring."

"So?"

"It is us... Our strength is what has diminished."

"What are you talking about?"

"We lack Orchid." Lavender sighed upon hearing that.

"Oh, Orchid, I wonder how she will be, she chose a very bad moment to go hunting, if she is still alive she must be in some hidden cave suffering to keep the males away from her, I hope she returns, things have gotten a little complicated since her departure."

"That's the problem. We have reached a point where governing our town has become so hard, first we lost our brother to the infection..."

"Don't mention that traitor!"

"Anyway, we coped well without him, but now we lack Orchid and dealing with battles and keeping order has become difficult. In a little while you will lay your eggs, and you know that three days before and three days after laying you must rest, during those six days only I will be there to protect the thrones, I am afraid that they will make an attack against us, I have heard rumors..."

"Lily, don't let yourself be carried away by stories told by boring people who have nothing to do."

"Well, the rumors make more sense than I want to admit. They say that there is a group of mantises that try to take power, challenge us in our most vulnerable moment to kill us and rise to the throne, there is something in the environment, something that makes me tense. I fear for our safety, and for their safety," she said, looking at Lavender's abdomen.

"We'll manage." Lavender hardened her gaze. "In the worst case, Tash will support us as a third element, he will not allow his offspring to be damaged".

"I hope that's enough," Lily replied with concern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the situation between Hollow, Orchid and Big is pretty stupid, but I'm not trying to do a masterpiece, I just want to have fun, and writing this was a lot of fun.


	15. Quiet Days

"Ania Ania!" Hornet called.

"My queen. What do you need?"

"I need you to send this letter. Please"

The maid looked at the red envelope that was in Hornet's hands and noticed that it had the royal seal of Deepnest on it, it was official correspondence regarding government affairs, she rarely had documents of such importance in her hands.

"Official documents... Did something serious happen? Is an enemy or a state of war suspected?" The spider looked very nervous.

"Eh? No, nothing like that, don't get paranoid Ania. I'm going to make a request to Hollow, but not as her sister, instead as the queen of Deepnest, this way he will answer faster. If all goes well, in a couple of days we will have the matter of the interrogation of the prisoner solved".

"Really!?" Ania looked genuinely surprised "Does Hallownest Heart have any miraculous medicine capable of accelerating healing?"

"No, of course not, that would be too good... The prisoner's wounds are too serious and... Strange, not even the hot springs have been able to optimally repair the damage... How the hell did you do that?"

"I have my methods," she replied grimly. "All those who are against the queen do not deserve pity..."

"I'm glad I don't have you among my enemies."

"But I would never hurt you." She looked at Hornet with such adoration that she felt somewhat uncomfortable.

"Okay whatever. I need you to send this letter, here it is".

"To the order!"

Hornet watched the spider walk away and raised her hands to her chest as she walked towards her office. In Ania's legs was the hope to clarify the truth about the attack on her eggs. The letter she had written contained a request for Hollow's dreamnail to be provided, so they could read the prisoner's mind and find out every detail about the situation, no secret could be hidden from its power and there would be no need to resort to language, spoken or written. Quirrel really had a great idea.

In the meantime, Ania was walking towards the stag station where a mailbox had been installed. Every morning the first stag of the day arrived with the postman on top, he withdrew the correspondence and then left. The postman never set foot in the village, in fact many Hallownest residents still feared the Deepnest area, but for them it was better, less hassle.

Now Ania had to cross the wire bridge that had recently been built to facilitate access to the stag station, it was made especially for spiders, in fact insects of other species had difficulty crossing it, but again due to the few visitors who received, it did not matter much.

The spider was already halfway across the bridge when her legs became entangled and she fell causing the entire bridge to swing, then inevitably the letter she was carrying slipped off her legs and began to fall slowly and painfully into the waters of the lake that was under the village.

The spider watched the letter perch on the surface and then sink slowly and dramatically. She had lost her queen's precious letter, the letter that contained the key to clearing up the prisoner's mystery. Actually it was not so serious, Hornet could write another one, but if she told her that she had lost the letter, she would get angry with her, the best thing was not to say anything so that she would not get angry or worried. It was much better, although... Better for who?

..........................................

"I think our guest mantis had a very rewarding experience in her chambers, fufufu" a dragonfly was commenting as she dusted off furniture.

"What are you talking about Amelia?" Asked a ladybug sweeping the room.

"You have not heard? But in what world do you live in, everyone talks about it".

"I'm already getting curious, tell me." She stopped sweeping for a moment to get closer to her partner.

"It turns out yesterday, after Hollow and the mantis returned from doing whatever in the city, the king and the knight took the lady to her room and locked themselves in with her, those who saw the scene say they had bought in the city an aphrodisiac ointment that they thought to occupy with her. And also was heard... You know, sounds from the room."

"Were they stuck behind the door to listen?"

"Probably..."

"For Wyrm..."

"It was for the good of the news." The dragonfly looked very sure of herself.

"A few weeks ago they said that the mantis was Hollow's girlfriend and that they were going to get married. But no one has spoken about the wedding, I don't know if this news are so credible."

"I had already forgotten that detail... Well, maybe they misunderstood things and this mantis is not a girlfriend, so it seems they only want her as a concubine. The truth this does not seem quite correct to me but well, he is the king, we are not going to question anything he does, but still..."

"I really have another theory."

"Seriously? What is it about?"

"Even if she were just a concubine, it wouldn't be good to require her services these days, you know, she's in heat."

"You're right! Copulating with her now would inevitably lead to the born of children, it would be unwise..."

"Unless that was the goal."

"What do you mean?"

"She arrived at exactly the right time to be fertilized, maybe they brought her here just for that, to be the mother of the king's offspring... Or perhaps not necessarily the king, just someone strong who can spawn the next generation... The heir to Hallownest".

"The heir of Hallownest! By Wyrm..."

"It makes a lot of sense according to me. Remember that when she arrived, the cook was ordered to assure her an appropriate diet to combat anemia, probably preparing her to conceive, which is to ensure that she was healthy and in the best possible condition."

"So that's why he ordered us to treat her with such courtesy despite her bad attitude, she is too important. Well... How cute, there will be babies in the castle."

"Perhaps we should start making some preparations to receive future offspring."

"You are right, the king has not ordered anything yet but it is best to be prepared. The heir to Hallownest... How wonderful, the best thing will be to tell the others..."

And that was how another rumor was born in the White palace. 

.............................................

Quirrel stretched lazily in his office chair, sitting so long had numbed his muscles and he needed to rest a bit. He stood up and looked at the pile of exams he had just corrected, it had been exhausting but it was finally over. He sighed and went to a room where he had some documents stored and took out the folder where he had the files of his students.

The teacher's work was quite gratifying, he was lighting the light of wisdom and curiosity in those ignorant little insects, and more and more bugs came to his classes from everywhere. It was great to see how his teaching work was increasingly recognized. But that meant more work, if he continued like this, soon he would no longer be able to dedicate himself to his investigations, apparently it was time to follow the example of his teacher and take a couple of apprentices, at least he had some quite promising candidates.

He took out the tokens of his prospective apprentices and set them aside, then glanced at the hanging nest that now occupied a corner of his office.

Hornet had almost become hysterical at not finding a corner she considered appropriate for left her eggs. "This place is very humid", "this site is very cold", "this place is not safe", "Here it is very ugly". He had finally managed to convince her to make the nest in his office, although she didn't stop complaining, she was actually being too picky considering the situation, but he chose not to say anything, his wife already looked too stressed to bother her.

Yes, just what he least wanted was to annoy her, Hornet seemed to be on the verge of collapse from worry. The affairs of her kingdom, added to the attack on her offspring, kept her constantly busy, and although she did not want to admit it, she was also somewhat distressed by the matter of the mantis and her brothers. In these difficult moments, the best thing he could do was support her, so when she went to visit him that night and hardly paid any attention to him, he did not reproach her.

Hornet arrived that night and went straight to cleaning the eggs while babbling a lot of problems and other things absently. Her visit was really short, she hardly exchanged words with Quirrel, she even rejected his invitation to drink tea and eat pastries, she must be really bad for that.

The pill bug really would have liked to hug her and pamper her for a while, but he understood that it was not the time, however that did not make him feel less alone. His daily treatment with his colleagues was not the same as being with his wife or his Close friends. He had only been locked in the archives for a day and he already hated it. And the worst thing is that he did not know how long this would continue, the incubation time for spiders and pillbugs was different.

He tried to reassure himself thinking that this would not always be the same, perhaps that night when Hornet visited him they could spend some quality time together.

.................................................. ..........

"Psss... Hey.... Hollow... Wake up...."

Orchid gently shook the knight trying to wake him up, which after a few seconds worked. At first Hollow's eyes widened but it looke sleepy, until he realized who was in front of him, then he jumped in surprise and fell back against the wall, in fact if he had had a voice he would have even screamed.

"Tsh ... Please, I'm not a ghost."

Oddly enough, for Hollow to see Orchid in his room was more surprising than seeing a ghost. The knight's puzzled face made the question he had in mind obvious.

"Well... The thing is that today when I woke up I found this thing on the table next to my bed." Orchid pulled out a beautiful Tiktik plush toy, the same one she had seen in the weaver's shop the other day. "I don't need to ask anyone to know that this gift is yours." A notorious blush appeared on the mantis' face as she hugged the plush toy "The thing is that... Thank you... But I do it for education! Not that I wanted this stuffed animal!"

Hollow looked at her happily, he knew that behind that facade of annoyance and haughtiness, there was actually a great joy and gratitude. This time he had finally managed to do something nice for her, and that's why he had her now in his room at dawn. Then the question arose as to why she had appeared so early. He got off his bed and looked for the magic board nearby.

"Orchid what are you doing here at this hour?" He wrote in his neat handwriting.

"Wel ... This... I came to thank you for the stuffed animal."

"But couldn't you wait until breakfast?"

"I just... I didn't want anyone to see me... Because I..."

"But my brothers already saw it all." After writing this, Hollow pointed behind Orchid.

The terrified mantis turned to see. It was only then that she realized that in that ridiculously large room there were two other beds, in each of them there was a vesel, one was the specimen of 5 horns that she saw in their first meeting in Green Path, and the other was a vessel that had never she had seen. He had three horns, two of them very similar to Ogrimm's and the third conical in the center of his head, also this bug wore a green hood.

"What are they doing here!!" Orchid screeched.

"I share a room with Green and Lumis"

"W-w, why? You're supposed to be the captain of the royal guard! You could have your own room if you want!"

"But I don't want to, it's fun to share a room with them"

Both vessels did not understand what the problem was, but they were enjoying the moment very much. The behavior of that mantis was very funny and they did not bother to hide the laughter that caused them. Orchid was becoming redder, the words stuck in her throat and she did not know what to do, she stood up then and shouted at them.

"You better not tell anyone! Because otherwise..."

"Not tell to whom?"

To Orchid's regret, just then Ogrim opened the door to the room and entered, he was greatly surprised to see the mantis there, but the one who seemed most surprised was Orchid.

"Aaaaaahhh!" The mantis grabbed a pillow from Hollow's bed and threw it at Ogrim's face.

The dung beetle had a certain sense of dejavu to it, but played it down, he removed the pillow from his head, and caught a glimpse of the girl hiding a stuffed tiktik behind her. He had to make an effort to suppress a smile at that, apparently that murderous machine had a tender side too, which of course reassured him, seducing her with trinkets seemed a good option to win her friendship. Perhaps this way she would stop being a threat to the king. Of course, at no time had she seemed like a threat, but his experience made him distrust everything unknown.

"Uh... well... whatever," said the beetle, ignoring the fact that a pillow had been thrown over his head. "It's about time to get up for the knights-in-training. Lumis, get up."

Lumis, get up."

The five-horned vessel came out of bed and began to make the bed diligently, as instructed to do so. Although they had servants for these tasks, to teach them discipline they had to do it. Since Green was not a knight, he could stay in bed until later. It was the same for Hollow, who was also on privilege because he was on vacation, although the force of habit made him get up early.

Orchid was silent observing how Hollow and Lumis made their beds, but when they finished, something happened that she did not expect, the knight in training approached her and took her claw while gesturing. The mantis looked at Ogrim with a puzzled expression.

"Wow..." Ogrim looked somewhat surprised. "Lumis wants you to come to breakfast with us".

For the insect it was a pleasant change, all the previous days she had had her daily meals in the solitude of her room, they attended her with cordiality but she felt the coldness in the treatment, although she did not care, since she was convinced that the Weak bugs didn't deserve his attention. However, a slight change in attitude over the past few days seemed to have brought about unexpected changes, and thanks to that, she was now in the main dining room of the castle surrounded by the silent vessels.

She was able to recognize several of them: The four young she met in Green Path, apparently they always sat together and did most of the things together. Also elsewhere she saw Shadow Izuri and Soul who looked extremely discouraged and ate their breakfast reluctantly, the punishment surely weighed on them. She saw a few other vessels but could not recognize them, she was only able to notice that there was a kind of hierarchical order among them, although they were all very close and friendly, Hollow, Shadow and another girl she did not know, were treated with something more respect.

Unfortunately for Orchid, although the dining room looked very lively, not a single word was emitted, all the diners talked in that strange mute language that only they seemed to understand, although Ogrim managed quite well. In fact by the words released by the Beetle, she could more or less deduce what they were talking about. You could see that all the knight's apprentices had a great appreciation for Ogrim, although they didn't stop playing pranks on him from time to time. She suddenly noticed that the four-horned girl who answered Kairi's name was catching her attention.

"What happend with you who are suddenly so intent on staying close to Orchid?" Ogrim asked, then headed for the mantis. "Kairi asks if you would like to join us in our training".

The word training seemed to immediately animate the mantis, she had seen her weakness in her own flesh and the idea of strengthening herself was attractive to her, she had dedicated her life to the art of fighting, not being good at it caused her tremendous anguish. She would grow stronger no matter what, or she would die trying.

"I'd love to," she said with a murderous smile that intimidated Ogrim, though none of the vessels seemed to notice it.

.......................................

_The sound of metal and the battle cries of the two females resonated in the room, it accompanied the deadly dance of fury and elegance they performed. Zemer's silver wings beautifully reflected the light as she blocked Clover's quick hits. The young mantis moved with speed and surgical precision, vanishing like a ghost to reappear with the power of a hurricane, but regardless of her speed or strength, shewas incapable of damaging the knight, who repelled each attack with such skill that almost It seemed like child's play to her._

_Clover was beginning to wonder if it was the four antennas on her head that made it easier for her to detect her, because there was no way to catching her off guard. Also, she was starting to get tired._

_Suddenly the young mantis stumbled and lost her balance, so she rushed to the ground. Then Ze'mer acted quickly and efficiently. Although they were in the middle of a fight, she did not hesitate to assist her, so she received her between her arms preventing her from falling and both ended up fused into a kind of half-hug, in which Clover lay almost lying with her face a few inches from the knight's._

_That was the first time that both were so close to each other, despite the fact that they had begun to live closer together and to share several very pleasant moments, they had always kept a prudent distance, always making it clear that they were not friends or nothing else, just a teacher and her disciple._

_But now being so close to each other, for the first time they could fully appreciate each other. Ze'mer wondered when that grumpy little mantis had become so beautiful and graceful, her delicate and fine shapes making her look more like a beautiful flower than a simple herb. For her part, Clover felt overwhelmed by the brilliance of Ze'mer, shiny and shining silver was everything she saw, her wings, her body, her armor, everything shone and for some reason at that moment it seemed even brighter than the same castle._

_But the magic of that instant was broken by the coughing of someone trying to get attention. Then Ze'mer immediately turned away from her student, dropping her without any care, she took three steps away and exclaimed._

_"Wai Le'mer here!"_

_"Sorry, did I interrupt something?" Ogrim said somewhat embarrassed._

_"Training, just that."_

_"Well... It didn't seem like the truth but... Ze'mer, be careful, please. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your life but I'm not sure that the king is very happy with this..."_

_"Fight with me!" Clover suddenly yelled from the ground._

_Ogrim looked down and saw the mantis lying on the floor trying to get to her feet, although she looked somewhat shocked and was having trouble with that._

_"I'm sorry miss but I don't think you're fit for that." He tried to be polite and kind._

_"Yes I am! I am always fit to fight! That is why I am here! To become strong, nothing more! So stop thinking about weird ideas and fight me". Clover prayed that Ogrim believed that her blush was one of rage and not a strange involuntary reaction from her body._

... ........... .......... .......... .. ............

Again Ogrim had that feeling of living something he had lived before, although with slight differences.

The mantis in front of him was older, more powerful and did not look in such a shameful state, in fact she looked very good, proud standing in front of him showing her claws, however, several years had passed since then and Ogrim already was not so young.

"I'm sorry miss, but I'll have to decline the challenge, at this point in my life I doubt I will be a worthy rival to you."

"Don't tell me," the mantis snorted annoyed. "Well, even if your condition is not the best, you will surely turn out to be a better opponent than those brats," she said, pointing to the four knight apprentices who looked exhausted on the floor after facing Orchid.

"You don't have to be so rude," said Ogrim somewhat annoyed, "they're apprentices, they have a long way to go."

"And at the rate they go, that path will be even longer. Are you supposed to be their coach? I hope you are better fighting than teaching".

"Are you questioning my skills as a teacher? I want you to know that it was the king himself who chose me for this".

"The king..." Orchid sighed. "I think he lacks practice evaluating people, if you have not been able to correct the shortcomings of your students, I think that the job of coach is not for you.

"And do you think you could do better?" Now the beetle was angry.

In response Orchid walked towards the four apprentices who were still on the floor recovering and looked at them sternly. They cringed in their places somewhat intimidated, then the Lord raised her claw and pointed towards the three-horned vessel.

"Cliff, I see that your attacks lack strength, in addition to being lazy, if you want to be a knight you will have to train harder to develop your strength, otherwise there will be few enemies that you manage to defeat".

He stopped looking at Cliff and headed towards her next victim, Lumis.

"Lumis, you have strength and ability but your posture is lousy, if you fight with your legs so close you lose support and balance, it is extremely easy to knock yourself down, you should correct that".

The mantis walked a little more this time heading towards that vessel that caused so much confusion by not being able to determine if they was a male or a female.

"Chari, look, your problem becomes ridiculous of how simple it is. If you close your eyes every time you attack you are unprotected from enemy attacks. Stop closing your eyes!"

Finally she headed for the short four-horned vessel. Orchid looked at her closely, then sighed.

"Sincerely, of the four you are the strongest and most skilled, but I feel that you do not believe it and that is why you do not manage to progress, it is as if you limited yourself to being weaker than your companions".

The words of the mantis left everyone extremely surprised, each apprentice spent a few moments thinking about what she had said and ended up concluding that it was true. Orchid had managed to detect exactly the shortcomings of each one.

"How..." Ogrim said incredulously.

"In the tribe I was one of the ones in charge of training the young, I have experience with this. And now, will you fight me?"

The beetle was somewhat intimidated by the mantis, he really didn't want to fight, so he tried to make her change her mind.

"Why don't you ask Hollow for it? He is much stronger than me".

"Do you want I end dead?"

At that time a couple of servants were passing by carrying some things and they could not help but hear what the mantis was saying, the problem is that since they had no context they interpreted the message as they wanted.

"...Hollow knows that I like that he is rude to me, but sometimes he exaggerates, he exhausts me taking me beyond what I can bear, it is fun I must admit it, but that does not help me to...."

The servants did not listen to the rest of the conversation, they hurried out to tell the juicy gossip they had heard.

"...And that's why fighting Hollow is not useful for me to improve my technique" Orchid suddenly noticed that Hollow had his eyes on her "What?"

She did not know it but her skills detecting shortcomings in battle and her knowledge of how to improve them had won Hollow's admiration. In reality, she had gradually managed to earn the respect of the vessel, both for her change of attitude and for the skills that showed.

Now they spent more time together and left the castle to take walks, the mantis had quickly learned how to move around the castle without being hurt by any of the saws that were in certain parts, she had a good memory, she was interested in botany and medicine and curiously she was good at caring Children, they checked it out one day when they were left alone with the cook's son and then discovered them playing together.

She was weird, explosive, and never said what she wanted, but she had good qualities that Hollow valued a lot, plus her crazy and random behavior often made him laugh.

The only annoying thing was that obsession she had with becoming stronger, he did not want her to be a killing machine, but he supposed that it was something typical of the nature of mantises and for the good of her psyche, the best thing would be to help her a little. He took out his magic board and wrote a few things.

"If you are looking for an opponent who can help you improve, maybe we should go see Moon at Crystal Peak"

"Moon? And who is she?"

"She is the Crystal Peak Guardian, one of the strongest knights in the kingdom and therefore appointed to protect that territory. She used to help me train knights before she was a guardian".

"Sounds good, if I can strengthen myself with her, I'm interested in meeting her."

"You will surely find the trip interesting, the pink crystals that grow there are very beautiful to see".

"Crystals? Like those in the windows?"

"Uh... Not exactly, they're more like transparent pink rocks." The mantis cocked her head in confusion. "When you see them you will understand, it is difficult to describe".

Orchid said nothing, just kept her stern demeanor and waved her tail slightly, a small sign that Hollow had already learned to interpret, Orchid was excited.

.................................................. ....

Quirrel was delicately cleaning the eggs in the solitude of his office while he lamented his existence. He felt increasingly depressed, his interaction with Hornet was increasingly limited.

Exhausted from her duties with her kingdom, the crossbreed no longer had time or energy for anything, that night she simply sent a simple letter to Quirrel asking him to clean the eggs for her.

The pillbug did not refuse, but the discouragement began to take over his heart, he had already been confined for four days, he missed everyone and the pain of loneliness increasingly weighed on him, finally his nature of pillbug had blossomed, he longed company and affection, and he didn't have it, he was going to have a serious conversation with Hornet ... When he could see her again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a narrative experiment that I did, counting small scenes that show different characters in the story. This chapter covers about four days, and it's like a little pause before getting into what follows. I hope you liked it!


	16. Cristal Peak

That day, when Ania opened the door to the Queen's den and entered, she found Hornet waiting for her at the entrance with an expectant expression and quite uneasiness. She wasn't really surprised, after she'd made her send a certain letter, every morning when she came back from looking for the newspaper, she stood by the door with a look of expectation and concern and always asked her the same question.

"Has any letter come from King Big?"

"No my queen, there is no answer yet."

"But what the hell is going on! Big never takes so long to answer. It's been four days! Right now that I really need their help they don't give it. Damn!" She released her anger by kicking at a nearby chair.

"Maybe... He's been very busy," said the arachnid with some nervousness.

"With him that's not an excuse, because of the little he sleeps he has more time than most of the bugs. What's the problem with to take a few minutes to write me a few letters?"

"My queen, don't be upset, I don't think it's good for her health."

"I'm going to get angry If I want! This is urgent! My children are in danger! I don't want to live sick with worry thinking that any day they can be killed without any reason... It's over, I'm going to go to the castle myself". Hornet was beginning to walk toward the exit in fury when Ania stopped her.

"But Your Majesty... Do you remember that you must organize the budgets for public expenses of the next year? You do not have much time to deliver the report, if you go to the castle you will lose all afternoon".

"I don't care! My children are first!"

"But... What if it wasn't Big's fault?"

"What do you mean Ania?" Hornet looked at her suspiciously.

"If for some reason... The letter had not arrived... You would go to the castle to make a scandal for nothing and you would be tremendously embarrassed..."

"And why wouldn't the letter arrive? Do you know something that I don't?"

"Of course not my queen! I'm just shuffling all the possibilities, since you said it is very rare that Big does not answer, perhaps there is a reason for that".

"Are you suggesting that the mail service lost my letter?"

"Maybe?" Ania was getting more and more nervous, she didn't want to involve others in this problem.

Without saying a word, Hornet began to walk towards her office with heavy steps, smoke could almost be seen coming out of her head from the fury she was projecting.

"My lady... Where are you going?"

"To write another letter. Tomorrow I will leave it myself and I will take the identity of the postman and the deer that will transport them, of course I will also file a complaint with the post office. This is unacceptable!"

The maid could not reply to her words, the loss of the letter was her fault and she felt terrible that others had to pay for it, but if she told the truth, Hornet would get mad at her, maybe even fire her. She lowered her head and withdrew to continue with her cleaning tasks, hoping that everything would be solved in some way, the anguish killed her.

............................................................

Beautiful crystals covered the walls of the cave that the knight and the mantis explored. It were bright, and of all possible shades of pink, some were even somewhat darker, almost purple in color.

Orchid was amazed at what her eyes saw. The mantises did not know about jewels or precious stones. In her territory the only thing that was there were common mushrooms and rocks. So for her, the impact was greater, it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen In her life. Did Hallownest hide treasures like this? What other things remained to be seen? At that moment she felt grateful to have abandoned her land, because thanks to that she was able to witness this miracle of nature.

"Hollow! Look at this crystal over here. It's huge! And their edges are very sharp, would it be very dangerous to climb it? I see a cave up there. Do you think there is a way to up there? Perhaps there are crystals of other colors".

It seemed adorable to the knight to see his companion so excited by those rocks that in his eyes it no longer represented anything new. The mantis' tail wagged gently from top to bottom, she was indeed very pleased. In addition he liked to see her predisposition to exploration. Hollow loved to go through complicated caves and check dark corners, just to see what was there, unfortunately he rarely found a companion who would second him in his explorations. Was it that he finally found someone who shared that particular taste?

No doubt Orchid was having a great time as to have forgotten one of the basic rules of a hunter: Always be aware of the environment.

Orchid completely overlooked the Crystal Hunter that was approaching them. At least her extraordinary reflexes and peripheral vision still worked very well, because she was able to dodge the crystal projectile that was thrown at her with nothing more than a superficial scratch on one of her legs.

She immediately went into battle position and drew her spear. According to the people of the palace, the Crystal Summit was a dangerous place, because of that they had allowed her to retrieve her weapon. She was very grateful for it, she could not carry out ranged attacks without it.

She immediately waved her weapon and a whirlwind of cutting wind shot out towards the flying insect, but it almost without effort moved to the side and dodged the attack, however this sharp air cluster then returned towards its target attacking it from behind, without However it was not able to harm the Crystal Hunter.

The insect had a kind of armor made of mineral that covered the back of its body, so it was not damaged in the least by Orchid's attack.

The Lord looked at it with a mixture of fright and amazement at this fact. Until now she had never met an insect that was immune to her attack, this was a prey that challenged her capabilities, incredible thing considering how small it was. The way things looked, there were plenty of prey to be hunted outside of Fungal Wastes, and she was determined to measure herself against as many as she could.

The bug, sensing the danger Orchid posed, rose a little, which made the mantis frown. The crystal-covered walls were too sharp to climb, and the mantis's leap did not lift her high enough to kill that creature. Suddenly she noticed how the beetle twisted its tail forward exposing the crystals that grew on it, then the rocks gleamed slightly and a piece of them shot towards Orchid. She avoided the projectile without problems, but she did not count on the rock at touching the floor would grow explosively, like a flower that opened in the earth, spreading its deadly petals to everything around it.

This time the damage to the mantis was not so slight, a rather annoying cut was made to her legs, and her freedom of movement was cut short. Orchid growled in frustration and blew out another swirl of wind that just like last time was easily dodged. She was still thinking about how to defeat that unreachable enemy when she saw Hollow overtake her. The vessel gave a powerful jump that lifted him to a great height, but obviously that was not going to be enough, so he gave a "second jump" in the air using a kind of silver wings that magically appeared under his cloak.

Thanks to the Monarch's wings, Hollow managed to land a blow on the flying insect, but that was not enough to knock him down, it still had energy left.

Orchid looked frustrated at Hollow, rage gnawing at her insides. Why could he defeat that thing and she couldn't? Did she have a slim chance of beating that creature? She couldn't jump that high nor did she have a pair of secret wings like him. But soon something would happen that would upset her even more.

Out of nowhere a pickaxe appeared in her field of vision. It flew in a parabolic trajectory and ended up colliding against the crystal hunter, burying itself in its head and knocking him down with a single absolutely effective blow.

The mute mantis in the print first looked at her knight thinking that he had used some kind of very sophisticated secret technique to defeat this creature, but nothing indicated that he had, the truth was that the knight was looking towards a tunnel with enough interest. Orchid followed his gaze and found a young mining beetle, this one had a light pink shell, it seemed that to work with minerals had caused some changes in his body. The bug wore his regulatory protection helmet along with a backpack in which it appeared to carry tools.

"Are you Ok?" Asked the insect. "Those things can be somewhat dangerous if not handled carefully".

Orchid looked the insect up and down more and more surprised. That bug was a dwarf! He was the size of Hornet. Admittedly, he was robust, probably because of his work, but he didn't look like a warrior. And that pathetic thing had beaten the flying thing that she couldn't reach with one blow? How was this possible? Was that miserable bug better than a Lord? This was inadmissible! She stood up and walked towards the insect, aiming her spear at him.

"You... I... A duel... Now!"

"What?" The insect did not seem to understand her challenge.

Hollow decided to step in before the situation got more complicated, so he pulled out his whiteboard and quickly scribbled a message.

"Ren, we came to see Moon. Can you take us with her?"

"Uh... Sure, no problem, but... Could you tell her to stop pointing that spear at me? It makes me nervous".

"I want my duel!"

"Why don't you challenge Hollow? He is good at fighting".

"I don't want he kills me".

"And I don't want you to kill me".

"I don't kill anyone" The vessel defended himself.

"And why do you want to fight me? I'm not a warrior or anything like that". The insect looked nervous.

"You defeated that thing." She withdrew her spear from Ren and pointed at the crystal hunter with it. "You defeated that being that I wasn't even able to reach! I couldn't hit it even once!"

"That? It's not the big deal." He regretted saying that when he saw the hateful expression from the mantis. "I mean... If someone meets these bugs for the first time, they may find it difficult, but it are not so difficult once they get used to how it think".

"I couldn't reach them."

"I couldn't really either, that's why I threw a pickaxe at it, it's the only way to defend yourself, with some practice you could also do it".

Orchid did not seem convinced by the answer, so she crossed her arms and turned her back on him, she had become angry and did not want to see anyone. Hollow tried to get her attention, but she She didn't look at him, which made him sigh, although Ren seemed to like that.

"Hahahahaha, but what a lovely girl, she reminds me of Moon."

Hollow thought about it a bit and could be right. When Moon did not like something she did not react very well and the worst thing is that sometimes it was impossible to know what the hell was wrong with her, maybe all the girls were the same ... Or maybe not, when Hornet was angry, she was bursting into fury, and she had no problem shouting everything that bothered her.

He tapped his pencil against the whiteboard drawing Orchid's attention and gestured for her to follow them, the mantis obeyed without saying a word, merely made her annoyance evident with soft grunts that Hollow was concerned with, though it caused laughter in Ren.

After a not very long walk they reached the heart of the mine, where was the barracks where the collected crystals were sent to be processed and used. If there was anything greater than Orchid's anger it was her curiosity. She cocked her head when she saw the beetles and pillbugs scrambling to collect and chop the crystals. What were they using them for? They were pretty but she didn't see much use for them.

"What do you use the crystals for?"

"Eh? Are you not angry anymore?" The mantis's withering gaze made him regret his joke. "I'm sorry. Well... It turns out that these crystals are imbued with a very special energy that has lots of uses, street lights and kitchen flames and some machines work thanks to the power of these stones. Of course, their energy is not infinite, as they are used they lose their color and brightness, but when they are already transparent and opaque they can be ground to make glass, so they are extremely useful. Don't you think that's great? These are some of the wonders that you can find in Hallownest, surely in the distant kingdom from which you come, no wonders like these can be seen" There was a certain pride in the beetle's voice.

"I don't come from such a distant land, I am from the mantis tribe in Fungal Wastes," she replied seriously.

"Eh? Really?" Ren had taken it for granted that Orchid was a tourist mantis who had befriended Hollow. "And what led you to abandon your tribe of uncivilized savages?"

Ren was a rather impertinent beetle, but he did not say things badly, it was just his way of expressing himself. However more than once that had brought him problems with other bugs, as in this case that once again ended with the spear of Orchid pointed at his chest and with her murderous gaze fixed on him.

"My tribe is not uncivilized," the mantis hissed. "We venerate strenght, we seek power, that does not make us less than you, fat and lazy bugs that only know of comforts ..."

"And yet this fat beetle defeated the crystal hunter and you didn't."

That single sentence was enough to depress Orchid who lowered her spear and her gaze, even her posture changed to an absolutely defeated one. Ren just looked at her curious, it seemed strange that someone changed her mood so abruptly, but he did not have much time to think about it, because the sound of Hollow's pencil against his whiteboard caught his attention. When he turned to see he noticed the message Hollow had written for him.

"Stop bothering Orchid"

The mantis also read the message and a slight blush covered her face, but she tried to hide it even though no one had noticed her.

"I am a strong and independent female! Don't defend me!"

"And what does it have to do you being strong and independent with me helping you? If I was in trouble I would also like to be helped"

"And I would like to be that person who helps you" Orchid thought to herself, but obviously she was not going to admit it out loud, instead she preferred to change the subject.

"Hey... And weren't you going to call a certain Moon or something like that?"

"Yes! I'll go find her".

The short bug went off cheerfully to find Moon, while the two bugs were left alone. Orchid was wondering if she should look for any topic of conversation in the meantime, although she didn't quite know what to say, she actually didn't know Hollow that much.

She knew he was devilishly attractive, that he had a gold heart, and was childish in some ways, he liked to eat candy and play with water, but the truth in her eagerness to keep her distance from him, she had not paid him enough attention... And now she wondered why she suddenly wanted to.

At that moment she noticed that Hollow had put himself in front of her in a very protective attitude and was looking around carefully. She was about to ask what this was all about when a loud noise alerted her.

"Watch out!" Ren shouted.

A weelbarrow charged with chopped glass flew out and behind it a rather impressive vessel appeared.

Her gesture and attitude suggested to Orchid that it was a girl, a huge girl. After Big she was probably the tallest insect she had ever seen. She had a sharp face with 6 long straight horns that curved downward, although each pair was shorter than the top one. Unlike other vessels that used to wear a cloak, she wore a kind of light blue tunic open to the middle that almost brushed the floor, under it you could see a second layer of light blue clothing a little lighter but a little more short, whose visible edge ended in a point, this second layer also had a silver embroidery that simulated the roots of a tree. At that time, too, she was carrying a huge, square-headed mace with an intricate curved design on its surface and some embedded crystal chips.

Of all the vessels that the mantis had seen so far, Moon was the most extravagant and above all impressive, she also looked very strong. What would it be like to fight against her? Yes, when Orchid met someone or something new, the first thing she saw was their potential as an opponent or prey, it was a habit that she could not get rid of.

When the girl saw Hollow, she started running towards him, making a thunderous noise with each step, she was far from having Big's elegance and delicacy, although somehow it was funny. The problem was that with all her emotion she hit a huge rock and with her enormous strengh she kicked it towards a shed making a hole in it. Then, scared, she wanted to go see the damage caused, but unfortunately she tripped and dropped her mace, which flew off and fell on top of a weelbarrow, breaking a wheel. She would have continued to cause disaster if Ren hadn't run to her to calm her down.

This was Moon, equally loving and destructive, loved and feared by all, the guardian of Crystal Peak.

When Moon stood still, Hollow just relaxed his posture and went to talk to her sister, both vessels greeted each other with great joy and immediately started one of their particular silent conversations that characterized the species. Orchid only looked at them with some annoyance, shee hated not understanding what was going on, but to her surprise Ren had no trouble integrating himself into the conversation.

"Training? Is seriously?" Exclaimed the pink beetle. "No! There is not a problem with that but... Doesn't it seem a bit dangerous to ask Moon?" Suddenly he noticed the girl's face of anguish. "I didn't mean it like that! I mean, you are very strong, perhaps you end up going too far". Hollow made some gestures that Ren interpreted. "Even if you say she's strong... This place is dangerous and she's not an armored insect". There was a new intervention from Hollow. "Yes, maybe I am not either, but at least I know how to kill the crystal hunters".

A chill ran down the bug's back when he felt Orchid's murderous gaze. If he didn't fix that matter, he saw it likely that that crazy mantis would pierce his guts with her spear.

"Hey... Moon, maybe you could teach her a couple of simple things, but don't go overboard and well..."

The beetle was suddenly caught by Moon who gave him an affectionate hug, and with him in her armas she walked towards a shed. Of course she indicated to her guests to follow her. Orchid was about to do so but a gesture from Hollow told her to wait a bit, only when there was a certain distance between them and Moon, Hollow allowed Orchid to walk. The knight loved his sister very much, but he was aware of how dangerous her clumsiness was, and until her companion got used to her and being constantly attentive to her surroundings, he would make sure to protect her.

That would be Orchid's first task, learning to be attentive to her surroundings so as not to be accidentally crushed to death. The mantis was used to battling a single creature, she did not have the experience of the vessel fighting against multiple opponents or with a hostile environment as dangerous as the enemy.

.....................................

In the solitude of his office, once again Quirrel took care of the eggs. He tried to cheer himself up by humming a song that was more depressing than he really wanted. His mood had dropped dramatically, it was a day off in the archives, there had been no Classes and most of the research bugs that worked with him would not attend that day, only a few bugs that were in charge of some experiments were in the building, but he did not want to disturb them with their personal problems.

At that moment he wanted to cry, he missed Hornet, Hollow, his siblings-in-law, his friends. How had he managed to travel half the world in absolute solitude without regretting it in the least? Perhaps it had been thanks to the mask, now that he thought about it, he never felt alone while he carried it with him, in those times although he did not remember it, he felt a friendly and protective presence always by his side, his teacher was in spirit at his side, guiding him.

He sighed sadly and looked at his eggs, perhaps he was rambling too much, but he did not have much to do, at that moment he only wished that the little ones were born at once, although it was in sad circumstances. His dream was to be with his wife when their young came to the world and share his joy with her, but as things were, he saw it very difficult, Hornet hardly visited him anymore.

............................................

The constant sounding of the pickaxe digging into the crystals was common in the mine of Crystal Peak. They had a constant and unique rhythm for each worker, but when they resonated together they seemed to sing a melody, a song of mineral and brilliance that each miner intoned during their working days. Sometimes the workers got so engrossed in their work that they let their minds wander and ended up singing strange songs.

Ohh, bury the knight with her broken nail,

bury the lady, lovely and pale!

Bury the priest in his tattered gown,

then bury the beggar with his shining crown!

It was a mysterious song, none of them remembered hearing it, but somehow they all knew the lyrics. A rumor had surfaced that the song was sung by an old miner who died of infection, and that her spirit wandered the mines to make sure everyone did a good job. It was a tale that rookies newcomers to the Crystal summit were often frightened by.

But this day, there was a new sound, one that didn't resonate with the rest and seemed to break the harmony of the place, causing everyone's headaches. It was Moon hitting the adjacent tunnel with his mace, causing pieces of glass to fall from the ceiling.

A somewhat large crystal fell from the heights and rushed towards a mining beetle that was enthusiastically biting into a fairly large crystal. Anyone would think that the sharp rock would kill her, but the insect with tremendous ease moved one step to the side dodging the projectile to then continue her work.

Dodging rocks and blunt objects was something that the miners were used to, they could perceive everything that happened around them and easily avoid it, this was a talent given by constant work in that dangerous environment. In general the miners took great care of the Rookies because their survival skills took time to develop. But when the workers had been there for some months, that place was not a challenge for them, they could kill any threatening creature that stalked them and handle most of the complicated situations, only collapses were something to fear, but for that they had Moon, she with her enormous strength could lift or destroy the rocks that had captive insects.

As novices who had a hard time dodging rocks, Orchid faced the same problems.

Now the mantis was facing Moon in a training duel that seemed more like a battle to the death for her, as much as she tried to get closer to the guardian, the numerous falling rocks made it impossible. She could not concentrate on attacking and, at the same time being aware of everything that fell from the roof. Plus the excess of rocks accumulated on the ground had made the terrain uneven and dangerous to walk, a misstep and she would end up falling. Was there any way to defeat Moon?

She had no doubt why she was the guardian of the place, her power was impressive. She thought with anguish that she had just met another powerful knight capable of defeating many warriors of her tribe, Hallonest Heart seemed to her more and more a powerful enemy. She had to get strong fast and return home to train her people. They had to know there was an horrible danger outside their little territory.

Suddenly Moon gave a huge jump and threw herself against Orchid, dropping her mace, which was loaded with the force of his weight, the mantis could barely avoid her attac, but in the process she tripped over one of the numerous rocks that upholstered the battlefield. The fall was inevitable, as were the numerous crystals that fell from the ceiling and went against her. These were going to pierce her breastplate, but Hollow timely reached out to her, covered her with his body, and used the Abyss Shriek. The soul explosion he released pulverized the crystals and prevented them from reaching them.

Once the knight made sure everything was safe, he looked down to see the mantis that was trapped under him, who seemed to be having another one of those moments when her head was not working very well.

Orchid was red and could not articulate a word, her knight was lying on top of her preventing her from moving. That was too sexy to be endured and she did not know how to react, she wanted to push him away but that position left her defenseless and submissive.

"Hey, find yourself an hotel, this is not the place to do those things," Ren said suddenly.

Orchid immediately pushed Hollow aside and slammed his head on the ground as she cried out in embarrassment. Apparently she was not as helpless or as submissive as she wanted to believe.

"It's not what you think!"

"Fufufu, I really love this girl." The pink beetle was having a great time with Orchid's explosive reactions.

"......?" Moon looked at him curiously.

"What do I mean? Oh Moon, I'll explain you later. Okay?" He headed for both bugs. "You can stop now, Orchid. I assure you, Hollow swallowed enough earth to regret what he did, even though he has no idea what it was".

Orchid released the bug who had to wipe the dirt off his face and then looked at the mantis in disgust.

"Hey? I'm sorry! I do not..."

"....." He shook his head, Orchid could not understand his words but she understood that he wanted to communicate that it did not matter.

"Well, well, I think it's about time to take a break," Ren interjected. "Come on, stand up. How about we go get something to eat? Surely you must be tired after all this training".

The group started to move towards the mine barracks. The two vessels led the way and separated a little from the other two critters to speak to each other in their particular silent language. Orchid looked at them with some envy, how much she would like to understand what her beloved knight was saying. It was exhausting having to wait for him to write on his board. She would like to hear his small voice, to hear a word randomly released spontaneously, instead of elaborate written speech, but that was beyond her means.

"Does their language intrigue you?" Ren said suddenly.

Orchid looked down, she had forgotten the presence of that insignificant insect... And she had also forgotten that she had to stop despise the little bugs, first because Hollow did not like it, and second because she had no reason to feel superior, at least until she was able to defeat a Crystal hunter.

"Yes, I'm quite curious. They don't utter a single word and still they are able to communicate perfectly, and that sign language is very curious... However, what intrigues me the most is the fact that their king speaks. Why does he speak and the rest not?"

"Mmmm... It is a good question. The reality is that everyone theoretically speaks, but their voices are so soft that no one can hear them unless they 'scream', however the larger individuals have louder voices. Moon has an audible voice, but they prefer to continue using their silent language because it is painful for them to speak".

"For real?" Orchid looked at him in surprise. "It is a pity, such a beautiful and powerful race... With such a flaw... So does King Big also hurt to speak?"

"I guess? I do not know, they say that perhaps his voice is not so powerful, but it does not hurt to use it, a gift from the Lord of the Shadows as everyone says".

"The god that everyone worships here?"

"Oh yes, our king's race calls themselves the shadelings, claiming to be blessed by him, and have spread their worship for the kingdom. The truth... Do not tell this to Moon but I am not a believer. I don't know, the thing they adore seems too fantastic to exist, the giant slug of the mosskins seems more credible to me".

"Do you need to see a god to believe in him?"

"Yes. What about you?"

Orchid decided not to answer, it was somewhat confusing for her. Before arriving at the White Palace she had never heard of the Lord of Shades, but then she became a faithful follower, desperate for her loneliness and rejection, every day she spoke to one of the images of the god, and she turned to him whenever she felt hopeless. The deity had done nothing for her, had given her no sign of something miraculous, but still, she kept turning to him whenever she felt overwhelmed.

"Well, I guess that's a difficult question. And changing the subject, what do you think about training with Moon?"

"She is a really powerful rival, until now I don't see the way to beat her. Each attack of her modifies the terrain and makes rocks fall from the ceiling, I can't pay attention to so many things at once and... How the hell do you do to avoid be crushed?"

"Well... it's just getting used to the sounds of the cavern"

"The sounds?"

"Well, you are a hunting species. Hunters often use their eyes more to see their prey, but the prey is guided more by the ear, they identify the enemy with the sound and their eyes use them only to see where to escape. So for us, the little beetles, to listen the cavern and predicting where its rocks will fall is not a big deal. Still I don't think you're hopeless, I don't see why a mantis can't become a good listener".

Orchid meditated the words of the bug, there was a lot of wisdom in them. Now she began to regret having despised the prey so much, she did not know but they had a lot to teach her, even the fat and lazy Hallownest insects had many contributions to make, definitely never again would she despise a non-hunting insect.

Many days of hard training awaited her, she would not leave that place until she was able to defeat Moon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The vessel featured in this chapter is also the brainchild of one of my wattpad readers, PedroArnulfoGutierre, it was fun working with her.  
In the next chapter there is one of those hot scenes


	17. Marital Problems

The huge doors of the archives were opened that night to receive a long-awaited visit. After three days of absence Hornet finally deigned to appear at the site. Her walk was proud and haughty, like a queen must be, but who was a good observer could tell how exhausted she was.

It was not physical exhaustion, she had actually slept properly all these days, what she had was mental exhaustion, anguish and fear. Things had not been easy these days, she had long faced the intrigues and uprisings of her people, normally that was not something that complicated her much, she remembered that her mother used to talk about the constant problems that a queen had to face. Power was something that seduced and destroyed those who did not have the strength to endure it. But now her detractors seemed stronger.

The spider sighed overwhelmed, she was not mistaken in thinking that she was having more difficulties to reign than her mother had. Herrah as every ruler had her detractors, but those who supported her were more. That was due to her enormous size often intimidated those who were against her. In Deepnest ruling was a delicate balance between diplomacy and brutality. As a rule, large bugs tended to be obeyed, the Pale King had been an exception, just as she was, but Hornet did not have a divine aura that intimidated everyone. In many ways she was extremely normal and that made them underestimate her.

At the end, thanks to many battles and displays of bad character, she managed to earn the respect of everyone, but that was exhausting, however she could obtain some peace in her life, and for a couple of years, she was able to govern without major difficulties enjoying the support of all. But now, with the issue of her offspring, again her enemies appeared and she was very busy trying to crush anyone who opposed her. Seriously that angered her, even with the good work she had done in recent years they could not accept her. It seemed that being a small crossbreed had more value than her talent to govern. But no matter, she would do whatever it took to bring peace to her kingdom and ensure a happy childhood for her children, she had already decided it.

All these thoughts crossed the mind of the crossbreed as she headed towards her husband's office. She had many problems, but she did not want to talk about them, she just wanted to be able to relax for a moment, if it had been for her, she would have gone directly to her home to rest, but it had been too many days without visiting her nest, she needed to clean the eggs. At that time she hated herself for being such a bad mother leaving her children abandoned, it was good that she had Quirrel to take care of them, otherwise she would be overwhelmed.

When she entered the office, she saw the sleeping pillbug leaning on his desk. She felt a little sorry for the bug, he should be curled up on his makeshift bed in the office instead of lying on the desk like that. She was going to wake him up, but then she changed her mind and headed straight for the eggs, took out one and started to check it carefully, then noticed that it was perfectly clean, Quirrel had done an impeccable job with them.

That was a relief, she would no longer have to spend more time in that place and could return to her home, tomorrow she had a meeting with a group of spiders that lived in the ruins of the failed tramway. There were plans to resume that project but she did not want to do it without consulting the opinion of her people. Again she found herself rambling as she headed for the door, she was so focused that she didn't notice that Quirrel had woken up and was talking to her.

"Hornet!" The pillbug finally shouted, making himself heard.

"Quirrel? Oh my, you're awake. You shouldn't fall asleep at your desk, then your back will hurt".

"And is that all you have to say?" There was a certain tone of disappointment in his voice, but Hornet ignored it.

"No, actually I wanted to thank you for taking care of the eggs, you did an excellent job and saved me a lot of time. I would have liked to visit them before but my occupations did not allow it, but since I count on your support I can be calmer".

"How easy. You leave abandoned your children, trusting that I will take care of them"

"Hey! They are not abandoned! I have been busy... Besides, not only I have the responsibility to take care of them! You're his father, take charge too".

"I have done, I have cared for them as requested, I did my part of the bargain, but it seems someone forgot to do theirs."

"So that's what this is all about? Are you angry because I didn't visit you every day?" Hornet's stress was making her very unsympathetic. "Stop being a crybaby, the world does not revolve around you".

"And is that your answer? Everything is my fault? You're a callous, a... A... A damn selfish". Now Quirrel was also beginning to show his anger.

"Selfish? Who do you think you are to talk about selfishness? Do you have any idea of everything I've had to go through these days? I have too many problems to deal with to watch your whims! While I am out there trying to keep the kingdom together you are here calm, entertained with your things without worrying about anything! You are the damn selfish!" The tone of her voice had risen higher and higher.

"Damn insensitive spider!" Now they were shouting, "I don't know why you married me! Did you just want to have a babysitter and a cook on hand?"

"Of course not! I wanted a partner who would always stay by my side!"

"So Hornet... why didn't you do the same? Why did you leave me alone?" A pair of rebellious tears welled up in his eyes. "You're cruel... You give me the illusion of having a loving family and then you take it from me..."

These last words deeply hurt Hornet and at that moment she finally reacted to the situation of her partner. She had practically abandoned him, locked in that den of knowledge, without a hint of love and understanding, even knowing how sensitive the pillbugs are to loneliness.

"Quirrel I... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

"Are you going to fix my broken heart with that?"

This time in response Hornet ran to meet him and hugged him tightly, just enough to feel his closeness, she had already learned the limit in which she began to suffocate him.

"I'm sorry Quirrel, I really was the callous," she said in a broken voice. "I never wanted to cause you this pain, I want to give you the affectionate family you deserve, I want to stay by your side and be your support. I... I really wanted to visit you, but I was too exhausted during the day, my head ended up messed up, I I felt overwhelmed and did not want to talk to you about my problems, so Ania recommended that I better rest and postpone the visit for later... And so three days passed". She buried her head in Quirrel's chest, trying to hide her tears.

Quirrel frowned when he heard about Ania, there was something about her that he did not like but he never told Hornet because she blindly trusted her maid.

"Okay, I accept your apology, I know you didn't want to leave me and... Maybe I was a bit demanding, you've been going through a lot of stress," he gently stroked his wife's horns. "But I don't mind listening to your problems, if you want to complain about your exhausting work day, or tell me about your enemies or talk about anything, I'm willing to hear you Hornet. Can you tell me about anything... Just... Talk to me, I want to have you close".

"Quirrel... I love you," Hornet said between whimpers, kissing the insect.

"Me too Hornet..."

Finally the pill bug hugged her back and sighed contentedly. That was like a dream, she was finally with him, Hornet had returned and at least for tonight, it was not in his plans to let her go.

"Well, I suppose you're going to stay to eat."

"To eat? But it is going to be very late, Ania said she would wait for me for dinner".

Quirrel had to strain to hide the disgust that came from hearing that.

"But Hornet, I had a loodle stew prepared with mushroom sauce and salad."

"Eh... Sounds good but I..."

"There is also cherry pie for dessert, they are your favorites, right?"

That was more than he could bear and he ended up falling for temptation.

Hornet ate as she had not in a long time, she loved Quirrel's cooking, and although Ania did not cook badly, she did not enjoy her dinners as much, she had even begun to eat less, which Quirrel managed to realize.

"What are you doing?" said the crossbreed with her face red when the pillbug put his hands under her cloak.

"You've lost weight," he said seriously, touching her.

"Maybe a little, but I also gained weight when I laid my eggs."

"But now you lost too much, you're going to have to come to eat more often."

"Is that an excuse for me to stay with you every night?"

"Maybe" he said with a mischievous smile.

"Sounds good to me," she said, playing along.

The spider queen felt relaxed and happy, as if she had taken a weight off her, during dinner she had told him the details of her last days and she had to admit that it is very good to talk to someone. Quirrel, for his part, had also told her about his advances in his investigations and all his achievements, in a while they had managed to resume the healthy relationship they had always had.

In addition to all of this, Hornet had put on something sweeter. She usually always showed a tough face and strong character, but when they were alone she used to show him a unique facet of her personality, a secret that belonged to the two of them and to no one else.

Quirrel was still touching his wife's body, although now it didn't seem like he was checking her health. Hornet began to feel her cheeks flush at the thought of what was to come.

"Quirrel... This..."

"Yes?" He said with a smile as he massaged Hornet's torso.

"We... We should clean this..." She said with a sigh looking at the table with the dirty dishes.

"I'll do it tomorrow, I don't want to waste any moment at your side Hornet, I missed you very much."

The half-breed sighed and extended one of her hands to caress the face of the pillbug who was sitting next to her.

"Sorry Quirrel, I should never have left you so alone."

"Well, now you can take advantage of making up for it." He said jokingly.

"Oh? So is that what you want?" As she said each word, she slowly stepped out of her chair and toward Quirrel's.

The teacher looked at her with some surprise when she positioned herself on top of him, and had to suppress a sigh when she began to caress his shell. Before he could say anything, a sweet and wet kiss cut his words, this show of affection was a discreet message but very clear to him, he had known her for several years and was able to interpret every action of hers.

Hornet had missed him, much more than she wanted to admit. She had probably been holding back her needs and desires, she always had this obsession with being strong, looking like the kind of bug that could handle anything without help from anyone. Quirrel did not like those behaviors of her, and when he was with her, he always made sure to be her support, to calm her mind and to give her all his love, although she did not always welcome him. He usually had to seduce her, but that gave a certain touch of fun and extravagance to the act.

But now it seemed to be Hornet who was looking for him, she had become attached to him and kissed his neck lovingly as she massaged his shell, it was delicious to feel her so close.

"It seems someone was in great need of affection."

"Eh?" Hornet flushed at the comment. "Not! I mean... This is to compensate you".

"Are you going to tell me you don't enjoy this?" He brushed his hand down her neck, drawing a stifled sigh.

"That doesn't matter... This is for... you."

Quirrel sighed. Did she think that because what she had put him through she did not deserve pleasure? That sense of duty for his wife could be quite annoying at times.

"Well... So since this is to compensate me, let's do things my way, okay?"

"Eh yes? And what do you have in mind?"

In response, Quirrel kissed her and made her get down from him, then headed to the center of the office where he had the huge pile of towels, sheets, and blankets that Hornet had brought from home, picked up a pair that he began to arrange into a fluffy bed.

"I think all this will be useful in the end," he said cheerfully, finishing preparing the place. "Now come here".

Hornet walked to the makeshift bed and sat in the center, her posture was rigid and regal, concealing any feeling of anticipation and longing, a discreet attitude that Quirrel intended to break.

The pillbug sat behind her and began to caress one of her horns. It was a very sensitive area of the crossbreed, in fact, she let nobody touch them, only Quirrel had that privilege and he knew how to take advantage of it.

Hornet began to relax with Quirrel's caresses, the pampering received was soft and warm. A pleasant shiver ran through her body at each touch and unconsciously she closed her eyes as a loud sigh escaped her chest. She looked up, lowering her horns in a manifestation of her relaxation. But if the caresses on this part reassured her, the stimulation of the tip had the opposite effect.

Without warning, Quirrel inserted the tip of the horn into his mouth and began to suck. Hornet screamed at the sudden stimulus and immediately a heat invaded her body, settling between her legs, a pleasant throb accompanied by this rise in temperature caused her a suffocating pleasure.

"Quirrel... No... This... Ah!"

Her husband did not respond, he continued to suck harder, alternating each time with soft licks that gave the crossbreed time to recover before the next attack. His wet mouth drove her crazy, she found it hard to contain her moans, that glorious sensation when he entered the horn to the bottom of his mouth took her breath away, and the tortuous and slow process of releasing it accelerated her heart. And when it finally seemed that everything was over, he took possession of her other horn.

The excitement was rising every moment and the firm posture she had tried to maintain finally collapsed, she leaned back slightly and unconsciously spread her legs with yearning. It was then that Quirrel finally released her from his pleasure session and hugged her behind. The panting and agitated spider queen was unable to utter a word, and was helpless when she felt Quirrel's hands slide discreetly under her clothing.

With such a state of arousal, every touch of Quirrel burned on her skin, it was a throbbing enjoyment that ran through her entire body and she didn't want it to stop. But this made her feel guilty, it was her duty to please him, not to be pleased, but the pillbug had reversed the roles. However, she did not have much time to think about it, Quirrel's hand reached her intimate area extracting from a sensual moan.

"Well, that was fast," said the teacher with a smile pressing the place.

He could feel that wet and swollen area, like a flower offering to be taken, even Hornet's own body seemed to yearn for it, it opened before him welcoming him to touch more deeply. With delicacy and a lot of love, he began to feel her intimacy, he felt his partner shiver in his arms as he rubbed the area, his fingers were increasingly wet and he took advantage of this to take them further. Hornet more and more excited. Quirrel's touch as he entered and left was a delight and now she could not help waving in the arms of her beloved, and for him, it was beautiful to have her like that, in addition, he loved to hear her gasps.

Slowly, he took off Hornet's clothes, revealing her black spider skin, and finally the crossbreed took off her cloak and looked at him with desire, although with a hint of sadness in the background.

"What's up love?" Quirrel asked, kissing her neck.

"It's just... This..." The massage in her intimate part made it difficult for her to put together coherent sentences. "This was supposed to be my compensation... I... Ah... I should... Ah! Quirrel!"

"Yes love..."

Hornet had ended up lying on the pillbug, panting, with her legs open as she was attended by her husband who had her possessively hugged. The female was a mess, but again she tried to gather her thoughts to speak.

"I was supposed to... make you happy..."

"I am very happy with you... And nothing makes me happier than your moans of pleasure." With a slight movement of his hands the half-breed twisted in his arms. "But... If you want to make me happy in your own way" He put his mouth next to Hornet's ear and in a whisper he said "You will have to take control, but I won't make it easy for you".

Hornet turned to him and looked at him silently. That was a sweet look, full of desire, full of love and tenderness, so warm that Quirrel felt burned and it was impossible for him to resist, he wanted to kiss her, hug her and let her do her will.

"You know I can't object to you when you get like that." He pulled her close to him and kissed her softly on the lips. "Okay, do what you want to me".

Hornet after giving a mischievous laugh gently pushed her husband leaving him lying down and began to kiss his body, to touch it with tenderness and passion, causing delight in the pillbug. The insect felt happy to be caressed, he had wanted this so much and now he finally had it, those strong hands rubbing his belly, her soft and wet mouth stamping on his body, the pleasure spreading through his being, generating that curious tingle at the end of his tail. Having his queen absolutely aware of him had no comparison, her looks, her pampers, her kisses, everything was for him and nobody else.

His breathing began to shake as he felt Hornet rub against him, the spider's skin was soft and luscious, he reached out his hands for her wanting to take her, but Hornet stopped him by holding both limbs against the bed, then she bit him. This was not a bite made to cause pain or leave marks, it was soft, only with the strength necessary to be stimulating. Quirrel let out a slight growl as he felt the heat gathering in his lower body, Hornet bit down once more and his body shuddered with joy a third bite finally made his erection bare.

The teacher's excitement rose at every turn, now with his fully visible masculinity, he desperately yearned to join Hornet, but she seemed to have other plans. In a malicious way she began to rub her intimacy against his erection, the wet and warm touch made him crazy, the stimulus was so much that it was almost painful and she seemed to extend that moment of agony concentrating on touching the tip, letting it enter slightly only to remove it and rub a little more.

"Hornet... Please... Ah!"

"Not yet... Leave me a little more."

"Let me in," he said pleadingly.

This time she did not answer, she gave him one more bite.

This ended up breaking Quirrel's resistance, who suddenly released himself from Hornet's grip, caught her in his arms and turned with her leaving her down and positioning himself above her, then with urgency he made his way inside her.

Normally he was much more tender when he did that, but Hornet had pushed him to his limit, he entered with momentum and strength, but the crossbreed was so wet that Quirrel slipped easily. Still, he felt somewhat worried about being so abrupt, but after seeing a mischievous smile on his wife's face, he calmed down, in fact he was not even able to perceive the guilt she had at first, that was good, now he could dedicate himself to give her pleasure without worries.

Hornet's interior was so warm, and it was so humid that it was easy to move, besides her narrowness had always fascinated him, and the satisfaction was even greater when he felt that sweet and rhyming pressure around his masculinity. He gazed with delight at that delicate body as black as night. How he adored her.

At first he began to push softly and slowly, enjoying the touch and the body of Hornet, she for her part seemed delighted, opened her legs being absolutely exposed to him, and with seductive looks encouraged him to continue.

The pill bug increased the speed and strength of his onslaught by drawing sounds and gasps from his wife. The pressure was exquisite, Hornet was letting out moans as she gripped the blanket on which she was leaning, it felt very good, more than good. Quirrel was turning out to be very passionate that night, taking her hard, hardly giving her time to breathe , he danced inside generating a pleasant current that took her to heaven. Her mind clouded with pleasure, she was only able to feel her husband and writhe in her place.

But at that moment Quirrel paused briefly, taking a moment to gaze at the crossbreed. He was fascinated by that satisfied face he saw, her languid body on the blanket, her open posture ready to receive him, her lustful eyes riveted on him, demanding more pleasure.

"Go on," she said in a sensual, longing voice.

"Not yet." Quirrel wanted to get even for what she done to him a moment ago.

"Please" The pillbug felt the pressure on his member increase in the form of rhythmic and regular pulsations, he sighed seeking to contain himself, that felt very good.

"Not yet love." He reached out a hand and started stroking Hornet's belly.

But the spider queen had much less patience than he did. She grabbed Quirrel's hand tightly, and put him down on the bed, then quickly, before her "prey" could make any move, she sat on top of his member and took a dominant position. She let out a cry of satisfaction as she felt the pillbug sink inside her. His erection throbbed, deep inside her, brushing against that intimate, hidden area that was capable of bringing her to glory.

Quirrel knew that now he couldn't shake off Hornet, she was too excited, she would probably make him end up in that position.

The crossbreed began to move, shaking her hips from back to front increasing the pressure on his erection, she looked so sensual, sitting on top of him, her eyes closed screaming his name. And each time she seemed to overflow more passion, her rams increased in speed and strength, her gasping accelerated every so often interrupted by suggestive grunts.

Hornet's hands tightened on the pillbug's shell, her excitement was leading her to the climax. Her body tensed as she let out an intense scream. The Quirrel's member throbbed inside the half-spider and he sighed as he felt a liquid trickle down the area, plus a feeling that something had come out from Hornet, he had an idea of what it could be but he was not going to say anything.

But his wife was not done yet. Again she resumed her dance of love, but this time leaning her body forward, in such a way that Quirrel no longer reached so deep inside her, but in return the pressure was increased, especially at the tip of his member.

This stimulation was extremely strong for the insect, he was unable to maintain his composure and he dissolved into screams and moans, his body tensed as those electrifying sensations ran through his being, the stimulus in the tip was too exquisite, too pleasant, he was reaching the ecstasy.

Hornet felt close to her second orgasm, seeing Quirrel in such a state stimulated her in an unthinkable way, she wanted to give him more, she wanted to take more, she wanted him to scream for her, to beg for her. She felt the heat inside her grow with each spasm of the pillbug, the touch on her privacy drove her crazy, she almost had trouble breathing.

"Hornet... I'm going to finish...."

She was also at her limit.

She began to increase the speed of her movements, Quirrel shout her name, she savored the moment, the touch in her intimate area, the pressure inside her and the satisfaction of knowing that she had caused such a state in her husband.

Quirrel reached out to Hornet and grabbed her hips, then stopped the spider's dance and helped her press hard against him. Feeling the member sink so deep inside, Hornet cried out, her entire body tensed, her back arched and the pillbug throbbed inside her, clutching his hands to Hornet's hips as he deposited his seeds inside her.

They looked at each other for a moment in silence as they caught their breath, and after a few seconds Hornet leaned down and kissed her husband.

The spider queen stood up, releasing Quirrel who sighed with satisfaction. He had not had such a night since he had conceived his children, although of course, pheromones were a natural aphrodisiac that made everything easier. But now Hornet was not in heat, what had happened had arisen by the force of the affection that they had.

"Oh no," said Hornet suddenly.

The teacher turned his gaze to his wife and found her embarrassed and with wet eyes looking at a pile of silk soaked in her fluids.

What Quirrel suspected happened. During her orgasm, Hornet had inadvertently let out a bit of her thread. The pillbug did not know very well why, but that was something very embarrassing for a spider, so now it was his turn to calm her down.

"Now, quiet Hornet, nothing happens," he said, hugging her and placing a kiss on her forehead.

"But it was... This was never supposed to happen again..."

"But it happened, it's not that serious".

"It's embarrassing, I'm not supposed to be a kid anymore, unable to control their thread."

"Sure is stress, you're under a lot of pressure, I think you should calm down a bit."

"Maybe... it's true."

Quirrel nodded hoping that this would help his wife take things slower, then he proceeded to take her silk to cut it. He took the strand and pulled lightly, with that simple action a good portion of thread came out from Hornet, this made him suspect a certain problematic and worrying situation.

"Hornet When was the last time you removed your excess thread?"

"Uh... the day before yesterday?... Or maybe it was before... I don't remember."

Quirrel sighed in concern. Spiders constantly produced silk, which during the day they used either for weaving or for other things. But from time to time they used less silk than they produced that day, this excess had to be removed, as their accumulation could be harmful to health. If Hornet had not been taking this minimal care of herself, it meant that she was bad, she was neglecting her health very much. Hornet needed him, much more than she wanted to admit.

"Hornet darling, don't you mind if I remove the excess silk?"

"Of course not, go ahead," she said with a smile, looking very happy.

Quirrel gave him a loving look and went to find a book to wind the thread.

He would never know what a spider felt when the thread was removed, but something made him suppose it was a relaxing sensation, since Hornet used to stay still with a sleepy look while he was doing that, in addition to appearing to like it, she never refused to let him do that.

The amount of thread he drew from Hornet was quite a bit and when he finished she was about to fall asleep.

He put the book aside, took out another blanket with which to wrap himself, and leaned back next to the crossbreed, who huddled next to him and hugged him tenderly.

"Thanks Quirrel, I don't know what I would do without you."

"It's nothing love, but you have to be more careful, accumulating thread is supposed to make you sick."

"I will be more careful next time," she sighed and buried her head in her husband's chest.

"You're lucky I'm always there for you." He stroked her head affectionately.

"Sorry... I'm sorry it's not the same on my part."

"I forgave you, Hornet, let's not talk about this anymore and we better sleep."

"Okay". She kissed the pillbug tenderly. "Good night Quirrel, I love you.

"I love you too, Hornet. Good night."

And so, in that position, embraced, they fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A fight and then a fluffy moment, I hope you liked it.
> 
> The truth is I am multishiper, but I have a favorite couple, and it is Quirrel x Hornet. But it's hard to find anything about these two, so I take pleasure in writing what I would like to read.


	18. Hatching

"Moon! No!"

The huge vessel was carrying a stack of dishes outside the mine barracks, despite the warnings from his friend Ren about not to do it. As a result, one of her long horns caught on the door, she lost her balance, and ended up breaking some dishes.

The guardian, sorry for what she had done, wanted to bend down to pick up the pieces, but when she did it, again she ended up hitting with her horns something she shouldn't have, this time a pillbug that was just coming out of the building. Before Moon continued her disasters, Ren came to her aid, ordered her to sit outside while he tended to the injured insect and sent another to pick up the broken dishes.

The somewhat angry and frustrated girl crossed her arms and did as she was asked. She knew she was clumsy, but she also wanted to help, even Hollow and Orchid were cooperating moving tables and chairs. And speaking of them, she observed that this pair got along quite well, right now Hollow was trying to teach sign language to her friend and she was doing her best to memorize the basic movements. She looked at them closely, they looked happy together, maybe they were be best friends, just as she was with Ren... Or maybe there was something else.

She walked up to them, seeking to attract attention, and when she reached their side, she dropped loudly, shaking the place. A couple of pebbles fell on top of them, but this time Orchid with a quick movement was able to knock it away. Then she turned to the knight who gave her a smile and a couple of thumbs up.

"It seems I'm just getting better." She did not want to make it notice but she was very proud of her achievement, Ren's advice had been very useful to her, and little by little she was putting them into practice.

Beside him meanwhile, Moon looked away annoyed. Hollow knew her, this was one of her subtle tantrums.

"(What's up Moon?)"

"(Nothing happens)"

"(Something happens to you)"

"(Maybe, but I'm not going to tell you)"

"(Come on, don't you trust your brother?)"

"(Well... Maybe if you bring me a sweet)"

Typical of Moon, always asking for sweets, sometimes they had to restrict access to them because of her excessive liking, but this time he would allow it. He got up and went to look for some, although not many, otherwise she would not want to eat from the barbecue they were preparing.

Moon's mood immediately changed as she thought of the sweets she could eat. She swayed gently in her place as a sign of her joy and then looked at Orchid, who did not seem very happy.

The mantis burned with jealousy, she could not understand the language of the vessels, only read her body language, and in the interaction between the two she saw a very close relationship that she did not like. She knew she had no right about Hollow, she knew there was no relationship to be upset with, but she couldn't help it. Moon looking at the mantis so annoyed wanted to ask what was going on, then she noticed that Hollow had left his whiteboard on a nearby table and took it, she supposed he wouldn't mind if she used it a bit.

"What's up Orchid?" She wrote in her elegant handwriting.

"Nothing," the mantis replied, turning her back on her.

This left Moon somewhat shocked, she used to do those little tantrums when she was frustrated, but it was not common someone to do them to her.

"Do you want a sweet?" She didn't mind giving her one of her goodies, but unlike her, Orchid was not going to fall for such a bribe.

Fortunately for Moon, Hollow returned soon, and the mantis' attitude did not go unnoticed by him.

"(What's wrong with Orchid?)" He asked his sister.

"(I don't know, suddenly she got like this, I even offered her a sweet and she didn't want to)".

Hollow stood in front of Orchid to look at her directly in the eyes, but she turned her gaze away, again he sought her eyes and she denied her gaze. Hollow scratched his head wondering what was happening to her now, to his surprise Orchid at least spoke to him.

"I don't want to hear from you, stay away." She said this even though all she wanted was for Hollow to pay attention to her, but that bad habit of saying the opposite of what she wanted, she wasn't going to get rid off so quickly.

However, Hollow already knowing her contradictory nature, more or less interpreted the mantis' wishes and hugged her. Immediately the female's face was painted carmine as a mixture of satisfaction and shame washed over her. Suddenly she noticed Moon's surprised look, she could not believe that her brother acted that way with a girl, in fact the entire camp had their eyes fixed on them.

"It seems that what we read in the newspaper the other day was true," a beetle whispered to a mealybug next to her.

The mantis when she realized this pushed Hollow away from her as she yelled at him.

"Stop! Don't spread with me! Don't think I'll give myself up to you that easy! Although you're handsome and sweet, I don't..." She suddenly realized the silly stuff she was saying and the fact that everyone was watching her "It's not what it seems!"

"Ah... I really love this girl," Ren said, approaching the group with a smile and a violin case in his arms. "Look Moon, I brought your violin, you can liven up the atmosphere a little while we wait for the food to be ready".

The guardian was agree, and with great enthusiasm she took her instrument, then with all the calm and delicacy in the world she began to prepare herself, perhaps she was awkward to move around her, but with the tasks that required delicacy she did well.

She took out the violin, tuned the strings, tightened the hairs on the bow, and passed a kind of sticky stone over them. Orchid looked at the whole process with a lot of curiosity, the violins were something unknown to her. There were musical instruments in the tribe, but it were much simpler, almost limited to being drums and some types of horns, and the music was based more on rhythm than melody.

But a violin was something much more sophisticated, something that produced a unique sound that could be given feeling and personality. A shiver ran down the mantis's back when the first sound tore through the cave air, she had never heard anything like this in her life, and that was only a warm-up exercise, simple arpeggios before starting to play.

Orchid had her full attention turned to Moon, she was ecstatic listening to herarpeggios, and her heart almost fell out of her chest when the real music started.

Moon chose to play a very happy melody, ideal to lift spirits and dance, many of the insects of the place began to hum or move smoothly to the rhythm of the music, they made light jumps as they went from one place to another.

Orchid's tail was also waving to the rhythm of Moon's tune, and Hollow for reasons he didn't understand was very tempted to touch it, but since he knew that this was an improper act, he held back the desire.

"The temptation to the forbidden," Ren joked beside him, Hollow just glared at him. "Just kidding. Hey, why don't you take her out dancing? She looks very excited".

Hollow considered the idea and thought it was good, so he went where Orchid and held out his hand. The mantis did not understand the meaning of that gesture, so she let herself be carried away by curiosity and naively took the hand he offered her. The knight gave her a smile that melted her heart and took her to an open area. They all stepped aside to give them space while the mantis was more and more confused, but her confusion increased even more when the knight began to drag her on the dance floor to the rhythm of the music.

Orquídea knew how to dance, but only the tribal dances they did during some special rituals, such as when young people lost their wings and passed into adulthood. But they were very simple dances, all in a round around a bonfire performing certain postures determined according to the rhythm drum. But this dance now was different, lively, spontaneous, free.

She found it difficult to keep up with the knight, her movements were clumsy and rigid, and she felt a little scared to be observed by everyone. What was happening? What was this all about? She began to distract herself with all the bugs around her, getting more and more nervous and losing her rhythm. Hollow noticed this and caught her in a timely manner.

Hollow tenderly touched the mantis's face to reassure her, then pointed to one of his own eyes and then pointed to the mantis' eyes. Based on what little she had learned from the intuitive language of shadelings, that meant of that was something like, "Look me in the eye and don't look away." And that's what she did.

In Hollow's eyes the Lord found tranquility, only that was enough for her to forget the world and lose her fears. He made her feel safe and protected, he was kind and sweet, with infinite patience to endure her follies and ravings. It was no longer just her heat that made her want to stay by his side, now she began to realize how much she liked sharing her time with him, and how terribly painful it would be to have to leave him.

A certain anguish settled in his chest at the thought of this. What would be her future regarding this relationship? And why was she suddenly considering their relationship? There was nothing between them!

But suddenly she had a vision, something almost magical and inexplicable. In front of her, she saw a mining beetle, like the many who worked there, even wearing the regulation helmet. The girl looked at her with a warm smile and spoke in the warmest, most melodious voice she had ever heard.

"Don't think about it, just live in the moment. Dance!"

And just as that vision appeared, it faded from her mind. It was a strange and confusing moment, but somehow reassuring, she removed all concern, took the knight's hands, and was carried away by the music.

Orchid lost all her rigidity, and began to move more freely, enjoying the dance and the company of the knight, both walked the track while the spectators applauded to the rhythm of the music, cheering them on from time to time with shouts and exclamations.

It was an elegant dance, between two bugs with a delicate and stylized appearance, lively and fast, the mantis had a very particular way of moving, just like in battle, it was reminiscent of a ghost, ethereal, mysterious. Soon Hollow no longer had to guide her steps and he let her dance at her own pace. The music ran through her, each chord seemed to express itself in her body, as if it vibrated and emitted a magical energy, something that resonated throughout the place. She was in harmony with the song, with the melody of the crystals that impregnated each individual present and filled their hearts with warmth.

And in all this, there was something that made Hollow feel tremendously nostalgic, something inside him stirred, a distant memory of his childhood, of a different but curiously similar dance, a dance of passion and fire performed by a terrible beast with a broken heart, he remembered those red eyes of fire, his elegance, his terrifying power and that scarlet child that would inherit the curse of her family.

He felt a stitch in his heart when he thought about it, but it didn't last long, because Orchid took him by the hand, snatching him from those painful memories and took command in that madness of sound and rhythm, dragging him all over the place in endless twists and turns. The music grew louder and more frantic, Moon's violin melted into trills and arpeggios, the palms sounded louder and the crystals screamed with joy until they climaxed. The music ended with a hasty chord, and by the time he realized it, Hollow was lying flat in one of Orchid's arms, as she leaned toward him looking him straight in the eye.

Both blushed at being in such a close situation, but curiously, this time it was Hollow who had his mind in a whirlwind and could not find how to react, all this seemed suspiciously similar to a situation he had lived in his childhood... More or less.

But the intimate atmosphere they were sharing was suddenly broken by the applause and cheers of all the spectators who were delighted with their show. Orchid from fright and surprise dropped Hollow who crashed to the floor. When she realized what she had done she looked at him sadly, but he didn't look annoyed, he just smiled at her from the ground so sweetly that it took her breath away. Indeed, when she had to abandon the knight she would suffer greatly.

...................................................................

The spider queen opened her eyes lazily and shifted in her bed, seeking to accommodate herself to continue sleeping, she felt her body heavy, but satisfied. Trying to turn around, she realized that a pair of arms held her captive and that she had no clothes on. Her first sign was alarm, although when she recognized the hands that held her and remembered what had happened the night before, she calmed down.

But this calm only lasted an instant, until she remembered that she had left Ania waiting for her for dinner. That had been irresponsible, she should have sent a messenger to say that she wouldn't be back that night so she wouldn't worry. What time was it? She gently pressed her husband's hands to release herself, but did more than that by waking the pillbug.

"Mmmm... Hornet? What happens?"

"It is time for me to go."

"What? So soon?"

"Quirrel, I spent the whole night with you, now you can't complain that I didn't pay attention to you."

"It is morning already? Time flies if I'm by your side".

"That sounds like one of the phrases in Bretta's novels."

"Maybe it is." He gave her a mischievous smile. "Well, I would invite you to breakfast but I suppose you're already late, I still have a lot to do too, like cleaning my desk. He said, glancing at his work table that was full of the remains of the previous dinner. Besides, I think I should clean this office too, since the children stay here I don't let anyone come in to clean and the room already starts to smell something strange".

"Yes, it really smells like... Egg..."

They both panicked upon realizing this and ran to the nest fearing that one of the eggs had fallen while they slept, but nothing was further from the truth. The suckers were safe, all three in their nest and one of them had a noticeable crack in its surface, which was enlarging every moment.

"Is that..."

"They are hatching! Hornet, our children are being born!"

After that there were no more words for a while, both were ecstatic watching the egg, the impatience to see what would hatch had their nerves on edge, they were about to be parents. They almost felt the urge to smash the shells themselves, but experts said it was best for the hatchlings to come out on their own, and this particular hatchling seemed to take its time.

The egg was already full of cracks everywhere and the little one had not yet deigned to come out, even a second egg had started to show signs of damage.

Although Quirrel was very nervous, his discomfort was nothing compared to Hornet's. He worried that they were healthy, she worried that they were healthy and that some were a spider. She still did not forget that if she did not provide an appropriate heir to the Deepnest, in her next heat she would have to copulate with a thoroughbred male.

And like a cruel move of fate, a piece of the shell finally fell revealing a segmented bluish shell. Hornet was devastated as she watched the creature be born. Soon the head emerged from the ovoid and all four eyes were visible. The baby began to crawl using their four arms, exposing their pillbug body.

The newborn creature was certainly curious, the crossbreeds always were, and a pillbug with four eyes and four arms was very striking.

Hornet was so shocked that she did not know how to react. They was a pillbug, a creature like that would never be accepted as an heir, even if they had spider features. She began to get nervous thinking about what was coming, about having to be courted by someone who was not Quirrel, just imagining someone else putting his hands on her made her sick..

"Hornet!" Quirrel yelled at her, pulling her out of her reveries. "Easy... There are still two, one of them may be the spider you are looking for."

"Yes... You're right... Two left... Yes..."

Hornet seemed to be in no condition to care for the newborn, so he went to fetch a towel himself from the pile of items Hornet had brought from home and kept in the office. When he returned, he gently took the newborn and began cleaning the fluids that covered their body while carefully checking them.

"They looks healthy, although somewhat lazy, they seems to just want to sleep," he said with a smile cradling the creature. "Mmm... From what I see it's a girl. We have a daughter Hornet!"

"Yes... a daughter..."

Hornet should have been elated with the birth of her firstborn, but she couldn't shake the worry off of her and was now turning her full attention to the second egg that was making great strides in hatching.

The baby that came in here seemed more energetic than their sister, the egg opened with surprising speed, in fact the little one seemed to have enough strength, because with a push the egg broke and at once they child jumped into the world.

Hornet almost screamed with joy, because what she had in front of her was exactly what she longed for. They was a perfect spider, with a wide abdomen, strong body, and a pair of horns that denoted their royal status, perhaps their only "defects" would be that they had only four eyes, and six limbs, two arms and four legs to be precise. But it was not that important, this little child had much more of a spider than herself.

"It's a spider! A spider, Quirrel!"

"Yes, I see it," he said, sharing his wife's joy. "Is beautiful".

He handed her a towel to clean the creature herself, Hornet happily accepted. She cradled the little baby in her hands while she hummed happily, she rarely looked so happy, now after weeks she could feel relieved, her tortuous wait was over, she had a perfect heiress and no one could complain. Also, now that she reviewed the newborn was a girl, she was perfect, because in Deepnest the females had preference when inheriting the throne.

"Are you calmer now, Hornet?"

"Yes, everything is fine, I have the heir to Deepnest." She hugged the creature, who stirred lazily and made a soft moan.

"Okay, but save a bit of excitement that a child is still missing." He pointed to the last egg that was already cracking. "What do you think it is?"

"I don't know and I don't care, if they is a pillbut or a spider I'm going to love them just the same, I just want they to be born healthy".

"I wish they were a boy, I mean, we already have two girls."

"Yes, I suppose it would be nice to have a boy."

Now calmer, while they waited for the last egg to open, they took the time to take care and leave their daughters in a crib that they had prepared for that moment. The little pillbug enjoyed burying herself among the blankets that were arranged for her, instead her sister screamed for food.

"Take it ease little one, I'm coming."

Quirrel had figured out that these days the eggs would hatch, and with all the free time he had, he had made some preparations and had bottles of baby food stored for them.

"And that?" The half-breed asked.

"I made it myself, reading some books on how to make nutritious smoothies for newborns."

"Well, I had some recipes Ania had given me".

"Sure it is good too, but now there's no time to ask her." He held out the food bottle to the young spider who began to eat almost desperately. "Look, she seems to like my recipe".

Hornet delighted in watching Quirrel take care of her daughter until a crunch caught her attention. Finally, the remaining hatchling's egg had split in half and the little one inside was struggling to get out.

Both parents came to witness the birth of their last child and when they contemplated what came from there, they were speechless.

Black body, rounded face, two large horns protruding from their head and two smaller ones from their forehead, large, black and above all expressionless eyes. They was a vessel!

Hornet was horrified to see her child, she almost wanted to deny that the thing had come out of her egg. How could it be? Why was something like this born? She had never been involved with the void. There was no reason for one of her children to come out like this!

Now she was beginning to imagine what it would be like to raise that being, she would never hear them sing, they would never call her mother, they would have trouble relating to others, they would have no definite gender and no chance of having children. But worst of all, there would not be a bug under that mask, there would be a creepy shadow that no one but their family could love.

All of these concerns crossed her head as her hands went to the newborn's neck. She needed to see them, she had to see their true form, even if her heart broke she had to contemplate the shadow hidden under the mask.

She put her fingers under the baby's face and pulled, but instead of make appear a shadow, what came out was the child's voice.

Then Hornet breathed with relief, perhaps they looked like a vessel, but it was just that, her child was normal, they had a voice, they was crying and expressing their disgust at the pain they felt, they had a will, they wished that they would treat them well, and now that she notice it, also had gender. He was a boy!

"Hornet, what are you doing?" Quirrel asked, worried that she had made his son cry.

"He is normal..." She said taking the sapling in her arms "He is normal!" She shouted with joy. "My son is normal..."

"And why wouldn't he be?"

"I don't know, it's that... When I saw his appearance..."

"To be honest I also feared the worst, but in reality this child's appearance does not have to mean that he is a shadeling, it is only the pale king's genes that are very strong in him."

"That old worm is still around in his own way," Hornet said thoughtfully. "But it doesn't matter." She hugged her boy, finally calming her tears. "You are already with me, you and your sisters. I will make sure to give you a good life and love you very much, I will be the best mother I can".

In response the boy gave a soft grunt and smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes! They born!


	19. The Three Children

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I suspect that some people read this fic without reading Hallownest Tales, I'm going to talk about a character who appears in that story so that they don't feel so lost when it appears.
> 
> Quirrel when he worked in the archives was very young and married to a pill bug named Danira, with whom he had had a clutch of eggs. When the infection broke out, she fled, taking a single egg that she managed to save, Quirrel stayed out of loyalty to her teacher and to fulfill the task entrusted to him. Then when he finally leaves Hallownest, he loses his memory.
> 
> Danira manages to see her son born and names him Dan, raises him for a few years and then she dies in an accident. But a friend of hers who was a cockroach adopts Dan and raises him. Years later this family of cockroaches moves to Hallownest when they hear of their resurgence and there Dan and Quirrel know each other, neither knows who the other is, Hollow and Hornet find out by ... Well, to see that point better you read the other fic. And that's all you need to know about Dan.

In a cozy cave in the lower area of Deep Nest, the spider queen and her consort were waiting anxiously and happily for the midwife to finish checking on her children.

Hornet was beaming with joy, humming a cute song as her hands deftly tangled her silk to make way for the creation of beautiful clothing, specifically children's clothing.

Most spiders used to prepare their children's trousseau before they were born, after all, all spiders were the same shape and roughly the same size at birth. But in Hornet's case, the appearance of her children was a mystery and she had no way of knowing what kind of clothing would be appropriate for them, so now they were born, she was weaving at least one outfit for each one at full speed. Quirrel looked at her admiringly, Hornet loved knitting (he knew it very well, he had many more scarves, capes and blankets than he really needed), but now she seemed to enjoy it more than ever.

He sighed at the thought of the mountain of clothes she would make for the little ones, her children could meet any type of need, but they would never be cold.

Suddenly they noticed that the midwife was approaching them with the little spider in her arms. Both came to listen to what she had to say about the newborn.

"Congratulations to both of you, and especially you Hornet, you have brought a perfect spider princess into the world, of course ignoring the fact that she only has four eyes and 6 limbs. But they are more than enough to survive."

"Then it's okay? She's healthy?"

"Sure, she's healthy and she's strong. She appears to have inherited her grandmother's genes. From what I have seen she will be large, she could be close to Herrah's size.

Hornet blinked in surprise, that was more than she expected, considering that neither she nor Quirrel were very tall. But if the little girl had gotten her grandmother's genes it was a great thing. She would have no trouble imposing respect around her and she could easily rule. Although the idea of her baby getting so big that she could carry her it made her a little uncomfortable. She sighed somewhat overwhelmed, as soon as the princess was ready to be queen, she would abdicate in her favor and go to live a quiet life in Bocasucia, although that still lacked many years.

"Come here, little one," Hornet spread her arms and the midwife gave her her daughter, "so you're going to be a very big girl, huh? Surely, and also you will be a good weaver".

"You have a good chance with that." the midwife corroborated, reaching out and touching the end of the girl's body from which she extracted a small strand of silk. "The quality of her silk is exceptional. It is firm, soft and very bright. She will impose respect among other spiders with such a material, although it will depend on her that transforms her silk into category clothing".

"I'll teach you everything I know, in a few years you'll be weaving clothes as beautiful as this one I made for you".

She pulled out the cloak she had knitted for the baby. It was very similar to the one she wore herself, but obviously a proper size for the girl, which covered her torso but left her spider abdomen exposed. Since she had just knitted it, it was white, but she intended to dye it, she had an intuition that a soft red would suit her.

As soon as the baby was dressed, she began to rub her face with the cloth, she loved how soft it was and she laughed happily.

"I think I have her approval."

Hornet proudly passed the baby to Quirrel who cradled her a moment before putting her in a portable crib they had with them, although the girl did not seem to want to leave her father. She grabbed one of his fingers and held it with all her strength . Quirrel felt his heart leap out of his chest.

"Fufufu, don't spoil her too much, Quirrel. She is the type of girl who always gets what she wants," said the centipede with a mischievous laugh.

"I'll try," said the pill bug slightly flushed. "Any other extra care?"

"Not many, feeding her well, keeping her warm and removing the thread she produces every night, she is too young to take care of herself."

"Understood".

"You'll have to do the same with hersister." Both parents blinked in surprise at this.

"Does her sister also produce silk?" The parents asked in unison.

"Well, it's not as good quality or as much as the princess's." The insect took the pill bug that was lying on her back. "I really doubt that this will serve to weave something."Just as she did with the spider, she ran his hand over the underside of the pill bug, extracting a bit of silk, which looked thick and opaque. "Still, this can be good for something, if she develops the needle combat style she will need it, or she can also make rope. But it will not be useful for knitting clothes. Although I don't see it serious, the pill bugs don't need to produce thread anyway, nor do they need four arms or four eyes... But she will surely be able to take advantage of her unique qualities".

"Certainly," Hornet took her daughter.

The mother had noticed that her daughter was somewhat cold bloody, so for her she had knitted a thick and warm hooded cloak that covered her body almost completely, although it was open in the middle for her to take out her arms. She planned to dye her clothes purple, although she had to admit that dressed in white she didn't look bad. The girl actually seemed happy too. She snuggled into her clothes, closed her eyes, and began to doze off.

"What? Did you fall asleep again? This girl..."

Hornet took her daughter to the crib, where the girl after stretching a little she finally fell asleep. Her father took the opportunity to caress her and the little girl in between dreams moaned softly while moving slightly, it was a truly tender image.

"She's very quiet," said the centipede. "It will be easy to raise her, I doubt she bothers much, unlike her brother".

Hornet and Quirrel turned to see the midwife to ask what she meant, but the answer came alone, the little boy was perched on the head of the bug waving his arms happily.

"Chester, get out of there," his mother scolded him.

But the boy ignored her, instead slid down the centipede's body and when he hit the ground he ran towards the cave exit. But his crazy career did not last long, because suddenly a needle stuck in the middle of his way, causing such a scare that the little one ended up falling down sitting down. He was about to cry when his mother as fast as her needle reached him and took him in her arms.

"Little demon, didn't you think the problems you caused in the Archives were enough?" Hornet complained. "Chester... I see you will cause me a lot of headaches".

"Eh? He already received a name? But if he's not even a day old". The midwife looked very surprised.

"Oh yeah..." Quirrel scratched his head awkwardly. "The truth is that it is a very funny story..."

.................................................. .........

_After the children were born and cared for appropriately, Quirrel and Hornet both cleaned and tidied the office while the offsprings rested in their crib, however, one of them turned out to be much more active than the others, precisely the only male in the clutch. While his sisters were still taking their first nap, he was already awake and ready to explore the world._

_"Don't get out of your crib," Quirrel chided as he interrupted his escape attempt. "This child is not even a day old and already wants to cause problems. Why can't you be like your sisters? Look at them, they are calm sleeping over there"._

_The boy just laughed mischievously, as if challenging him, to which his father could only sigh._

_"This boy... And speaking of the boy... We can't call him in that way all the life. Hornet have you already thought of a name you want to give him?"_

_"Name? Oh Quirrel, I hadn't told you, but in Deepnest, parents don't name their children"._

_"And who name them?"_

_"Destiny"._

_"What?"_

_"We believe that each person comes with a predestined name, the matter is to find that name. That is why parents do not name them, they could end up giving them a name based on their own tastes instead of the one that corresponds to them by right"._

_"And how long are they going to be without a name?"_

_"Well... that's variable, sometimes it's days, months, or even years"._

_"Years?"_

_"Well.... For example, it took me a long time to receive my name. The late Queen Vespa gave it to me when I went to train with her in the hive. Initially it was a nickname she gave me, which later ended up being my name. She used to say that I was as brave, fierce, daring and grumpy as a hornet"._

_"These arachnid customs are very rare" Quirrel shook his head somewhat disappointed "And how are we going to refer to them then?"_

_"Well, we have it easy: Son, daughter and princess."_

_"It doesn't convince me much but... Are you sure we can't name them? I had even prepared a list"._

_"A list?"_

_This undoubtedly caught the attention of the crossbreed, who followed her partner to his desk, where he opened a drawer and extracted a sheaf of papers where he had written down many names, both female and male._

_"Did you do all this?"_

_"Well... I was kind of anxious and thinking about how naming them helped me pass the time."_

_Hornet approached, took some of the papers, and began to read them._

_"Let's see... Rose... like the flower, ideal name for cheerful and enthusiastic girls, they usually emanate strength and security... And this other... Jongly... It means friendly, a name given to people who they overflow with warmth and gentleness... And this one here is Taiyo, which means sun... And what is a sun? Oh Quirrel, it's evident that you put effort to this of the names... It almost makes me sad that none of them is going to be used"._

_"Yeah well... The pill bug name our children, but if the spiders don't..."_

_As the two chatted, neither realized that the rebellious little boy had finally managed to escape from his crib. Despite being barely a few hours old, he was already able to walk and wander nearby stretches, and with each step he took, his ability to move increased._

_The infant walked to his parents silently, hoping to get his attention to be held, but changed his mind when one of the papers on the desk fell on him. He took it and looked at it carefully, it was something new for him, like everything in that world. He shook it a little and the sound of the paper finally alerted his parents to his presence._

_"Son, did you get out of the crib yet?" Hornet said, bending down to take him._

_But the boy interpreted that action as wanting to take away his paper, and he was not willing to do that, so with an unthinkable skill for someone his age, he avoided her and ran, unfortunately the door to the room was just open in that moment, and the boy went out into the hall._

_"No, son! Get back here!"_

_Hornet ran after him, Quirrel intended to follow her, but upon second thought, he could not leave the girls alone, so he first went to take the crib and then followed his wife._

_The little boy ran down the hall with an acceptable speed for someone of his small size, leaving Hornet admired. He seemed to have a very favorable genetics that made him possessing a lot of energy, perhaps it was the strength inherited from the Pale King that all her siblings seemed to share. She just hoped that he hadn't inherited their lack of common sense as well._

_Coincidentally at that time another individual was walking through the corridors of the Archives, looking for Quirrel and Hornet. He was Dan, a young pill bug who shared friendship with both and a suspicious similarity with the professor._

_The young insect was quite surprised when he saw the tiny baby running down the halls, but it was even more strange when this baby ran to him and hugged one of his legs. Not knowing very well what to do, he picked up the boy who was effusively waving a paper in his hands, then, more and more curious, he took the paper and read the name that was written on it._

_"Chester... is your name Chester?" He took the boy's laugh as an affirmative answer. "Okay, so tell me Chester. Where are your parents?"_

_"Here I am," said Hornet, who quickly ran up to the pill bug. "Thanks for catching him Dan. Bad boy! Don't put me through these scares" she reprimanded her son as she took him in her arms._

_"Is he your son? When was born?" Dan asked in surprise._

_"About two hours ago, and he already managed to cause troubles."_

_At that moment Quirrel came trotting after his wife with the basket with the girls, who by the sudden movement had awakened and looked somewhat annoyed, but all their anger seemed to disappear as soon as they saw Dan. They extended their arms towards him while they shrieked excitedly."Well, they seem to like you," Quirrel said cheerfully. "I wonder why it is? Maybe because of our physical resemblance? Anyway, do you want to come say hi?"_

_Quirrel put the basket down and Dan walked over to watch them. He thought they were pretty girls, so he began to pamper them delighted with how happy they looked for this._

_Hornet felt a sense of anguish when she saw this. She wondered if that behavior of her children would be the call of the blood, after all, although neither Quirrel nor Dan knew it, they were father and son, therefore, brother of her children. She was very tempted to confess the truth, but she knew that it would do no good, Quirrel had no memories of his past. It would be useless for them to find out about their relationship if Quirrel had no memories to share, or anecdotes to tell, there was nothing, just a pit of overcome pain and the latent fear that someone from his past would someday appear to claim him. Yes, the best thing was not to say anything, just as the old ghost had arranged, who in many ways was an idiot, but in others he had great wisdom._

_"Well, I'm sorry to interrupt the moment, but we really have things to do," Hornet said while she put Chester in the crib. "I must cancel a meeting I had with the inhabitants of the ruins of the old tramway, they will get angry but when they know the reason for it they will understand. They will also be responsible for spreading the news that the heir to Deepnest was born"._

_"Hmm... I suppose it's the spider," the young pill bug declared, looking at her closely. For some reason looking at these children made him feel warm._

_Suddenly he noticed that the boy was starting to escape from his crib again._

_"Hey! Chester runs away again." He said, taking the little boy and depositing him next to his sisters._

_"Chester?" Quirrel asked confused._

_"That's his name, isn't it? it said it on the paper he had with him"._

_"Actually that..."_

_"That's his name," Hornet interrupted. "This is how fate has decided"._

.................................................. ....

"Hahahaha, you could say he decided on his name himself." The midwife looked very amused by the story she had just heard. "Without a doubt the boy stands out everywhere".

"We know, even... His appearance makes him stand out," Quirrel said. "By any chance, you wouldn know why he looks like this?"

"Like what?"

"He is not a crossbreed."

"Ah... right." Most people tend to think that if the parents are of a different species all the children will be crossbreeds, but... The reality is that nature always tends towards the pure race. Only half of the children are born crossbreeds, the rest, or inherit the species from the father, or the mother. In fact, if the princess had children with a spider, chances are all her children are spiders, the same for the pillbugs. And it would be natural for them to be interested in someone of their own kind. Although this boy," He looked at Chester. "He is something like a new species, with the blood of the Pale King, his entire race is made up of relatives of him. I cannot imagine what his reproductive behavior will be but... Well, there are still many years to go for that. Enjoy your children, they are healthy and in good condition, You can go".

Both parents thanked the midwife for her attentions and left her a food offering as was the custom. Then they secured their children well in the basket and started on their way to the den they called home.

The children looked with great interest at everything around them, even the baby pillbug was next to her siblings, prying with sleepy eyes. They really enjoyed the trip, especially when Hornet started climbing with them to the tallest house in the village.

As soon as the door to that lair opened, the creature inside it greeted the homeowners with unexpected emotion.

"My queen!" Ania yelled as she ran to meet Hornet, but before reaching her, she stopped and bowed respectfully. "Your Majesty, welcome, I was waiting for you".

"Stand up Ania," Hornet replied in a more pleasant tone. "I know you can't wait to hear the news".

"My queen... is it true? Are the offsprings born?"

"It's true, come see them Ania." Hornet was beaming with joy and very proud of the children she had brought into the world.

The spider sighed deeply wondering what kind of children would have come out of that clutch, she was one of those who did not have much confidence in the type of children that a pillbug could generate, but she was speechless when she saw what was in the nest.

Sitting there in the front of the crib was a beautiful spider, she could see that she was missing eyes and legs, but that did not overshadow her childish beauty, she looked strong and you could see that she would grow a lot. Her heart thumped with the thought of what a magnificent queen she would be, she could already imagine her demonstrating all her power and taking Deepnest to absolute glory, there were so many possibilities hidden behind that childish gaze.

Her fantasies were interrupted when the princess's brother pushed the girl wanting to play, she willingly responded to the challenge and threw herself against her brother trying to grab his horns.

Now Ania was looking at the boy with some annoyance. He was not a crossbreed, but he did not seem a very graceful creature either, in her opinion the princess should be raised separately from her brother, a girl of her class could not relate to anyone. She was sure that Hornet as a mother would want the three children to stay together until their adult stage, but she would try to convince her otherwise, having that awful creature close could not be good for their education.

But if at first she was upset when she saw the boy, when she noticed the presence of the sleeping pill bug she felt disgust. Never in her life did she think she would see such an horrible creature, a pill bug with four arms and so many eyes seemed like a bum, they should have eliminated that being as soon as it hatched from the egg, although she would gladly eliminate it herself.

"They impressed you, right Ania?" Hornet commented cheerfully when her maid was lost looking at the children.

"Eh? Oh, of course!" She immediately regained her composure and the cheerful, helpful tone she always had with her queen. "All three are beautiful, beautiful little angels. But of course someone like you could only bring magnificent offspring to the world. I am so happy that the three of them managed to be born without complications".

"I likewise, I was worried that they would be broken before time and died, but they managed to be born. Now I can keep them at home, if there is any danger at least they will be able to hide, and I count on you to keep them safe, right Ania?"

"Of course my queen! I will take care of them with my life, in fact, right now I am going to put them in their room".

Ania was about to take the basket but Quirrel went ahead and took it first, then with a protective attitude towards the little ones and with a cold look on his face he said.

"I'll take them".

After this, he walked with his children to his rooms where the children's room was hidden. Hornet watched her husband walk away with enamored eyes, she was fascinated by that rude and protective attitude towards her children, but she also understood that his actions could have offended Ania, so she went to reassure her.

"Don't take it personally Ania, Quirrel is only concerned about the children and he is very protective with them." It was actually a lie, Quirrel had had no problem letting Dan and the midwife take the children, but she couldn't let them the maid knew it. "As the days go by he will calm down a bit".

"I hope so, there is nothing I want more than to serve you by caring for and protecting your offspring."

"By the way Ania, did any letter arrive?"

The same question that the queen had been asking for days, although this time there was finally a positive answer.

"Yes, my lady, today a letter came from the palace," she said, taking an envelope from her clothes and handing it to the ruler.

"Finally! Things seem to be getting better finally."The half-breed took the letter and opened it.

Ania stood in front of the queen looking at her nervously and waiting for her to comment on something from the king's message, she hardly dared to breathe in anticipation to know the content of the letter. Although Hornet at first seemed very happy reading the letter, as she advanced her face began to appear increasingly annoyed.

"Something wrong?" The maid dared to ask.

"It can't be!" She said crumpling the paper. "Hollow is not in the castle, he went to do I do not know what there in Cristal Peak. I swear that if I did not have my newborn children I would go to look for him to ask for the dreamnail!

"A real shame," Ania said, looking down at the ground. "But the young are already born and so much time has passed that I suppose that such a nail is no longer necessary".

"Oh no Ania, it is still necessary. I won't rest until I discover the truth about the attack on my eggs. Big said he would send for Hollow urgently, though I don't think they need to mail the nail anymore. I foresee that soon I will have to pay a visit to the castle, at that moment I will collect the artifact myself".

"And how is that nail supposed to work?"

"You don't have to worry about that Ania, it's a royal secret. You just keep silent, that I will take care of everything, soon we can be in peace and tranquility raising the children".

"You don't know how much I long for that day to come," she said with a sad smile.

.................................................. ...

The news of the birth of the heir to Deepnest had reached all parts of the kingdom with unthinkable speed, within a few hours, the little spider had become the main topic of conversation for each resident of the place and the opinions regarding the creature were of the most varied.

"Yes! It is a spider, they say she is a perfect spider, a more than appropriate heir. Who would have imagined that a pill bug could breed such a creature?"

"Bah, it does not convince me, it is only aspect, I assure you that although she looks like a spider, she will not behave like one. she will be the shame of the kingdom!"

"Aren't you being a little unreasonable?"

"Not at all, and I assure you that I'm not the only one who thinks that, more than one person around here who disagrees with this."

"But there is nothing they can do about it, their inheritance is already decided from birth."

"That there is nothing they can do? Oh hoho, you are wrong my friend, there is always something to do".

"What are you thinking about? What are you going to do?"

"Me? Nothing, I am not going to move a leg for this matter, I have neither the desire nor the time for this, but surely there will be someone out there who does. Our queen will have to be very careful if she wants to keep this clutch, it will not be an easy job".


	20. Battle vs Moon

Orchid was on her feet, with her weapon in her claws watching intently at her opponent. She was slightly nervous about the battle that was coming. After several days of training she felt that she had finally honed her battle prowess, had regained the agility she had lost after so much rest in the palace, and had learned to trust her ear as much as in her sight. She was ready for the final challenge, defeating Moon.

"Take it easy, Orchid," Ren shouted out of the makeshift battlefield. "You're doing great".

"Today is the day I will beat her, I'm not here to take things easy."

"It's not good to be smug." The beetle gave her a disapproving look. "Remember that you fight against Moon, the guardian of the Crystal Peak, beating her is not easy even for the best knights.

"Well, now she faces Orchid..."

"The pervert from Fungal Wastes," Ren completed.

"I am going to kill you!"

"Perfect, use those murderous cravings to fight Moon, you can do it Orchid!"

"......!" Along with the insect Hollow also encouraged her.

The mantis sighed, with time after getting to know Ren she had come to feel sympathy for the bug, at least enough to not wish him death, but she had to admit that sometimes it was heavy to tolerate him, he had a good heart but his way of doing things could be rough and unsubtle. But she chose to shake off those thoughts and focus on Moon, who was already holding her club high waiting to start.

The Lord did not want to make her wait any longer, both were face to face and after a respectful bow they began the combat.

As usual, Orchid began the offensive, and following the usual path, Moon stirred her mass and hit it on the ground causing numerous crystals to fall from the ceiling. This interrupted the mantis attack, which she had to focus on dodging, but this now seemed like a natural task for her, she didn't even have to bother to see where the rocks and projectiles fell.

She tossed one of her cutting wind swirls opting for a ranged attack, but Moon had no trouble blocking it. Most of Orchid's offensives were blocked, since the weight of Moon's weapon prevented her from dodging.

Orchid continued to approach until her opponent was within range of her weapon, then she began to attack with great speed performing a series of quick thrusts, like an endless pecking rain. Moon raised her weapon and used it to block each blow with quick but precise movements, as each action was short and did not require much effort, she could keep up with the mantis, but keeping the mace up high constantly began to numb her arms. She was using a lot of force to lift the mace, she knew she couldn't hold on much longer.

The guardian stepped back a couple of steps, Orchid immediately advanced her spear forward trying to press more, but she didn't expect Moon to lift her mace and push her away. Until now she had always limited herself to blocking and attacking her with the cave rocks, but apparently she was finally putting her in the point that she had become more aggressive.

Orchid was light, Moon's push was enough to send her flying far away. Hollow and Ren thought that this would be the end of the battle, but to their surprise the Lord spun in the air leaving her feet in position to land, managing to fall to her feet with the grace of a cat. She had no time to brag about her feat, the guardian had run towards her and had jumped to an impressive height and was now falling towards her using the weight of the dough to increase the damage.

The mantis jumped slightly to the side avoiding damage, but the shaking of the earth left her somewhat stunned, some rocks fell from the sky after that blow and she was barely able to avoid them, however she was not intimidated by this and as soon as she was in a position, she jumped towards Moon, but she waved her mace again, hitting her in the air and throwing her aside.

The damage received this time was more noticeable, she did not manage to land properly, so he fell gracelessly crawling on the floor and receiving some scratches on her shell. It was not enough to defeat the mantis, Moon knew it, so without giving up, she ran towards her ready to attack once more.

The Lord was in a bad position to respond to such an attack, so she resorted to desperate measures. She took up her spear and made a swirl of cutting wind from the ground, throwing it at such a low altitude was not convenient since any rock could destroy it, but somehow the wind attack managed to reach Moon. She was strong, but she had no protection on her body, so it was not convenient for her to receive the damage, the whirlpool pointed at her feet, so she dropped her mace to block it.

Her maneuver was successful and her feet were safe, but she didn't count on the mantis popping up out of nowhere behind her and, hitting Moon's head atrociously.

Moon fell with a crash, this attack had been brutal and painful, she did not imagine that Orchid would have such strength considering her slim body. She underestimated her, but it wouldn't happen again. She tightened her grip on her mace that she had never releasedand placed it in front of her. A metallic sound and the pressure on her arms indicated that, as she supposed, Orchid had attacked. The mantises were terrible, they had no mercy with anyone, and even if their enemy was on the ground, they would continue attacking until they were certain that it was finished.

She shoved Orchid back again and quickly stood up, only to receive another onslaught from the mantis, which this time rammed her spear into the side of her body, causing her clothing to stain black. This made Moon furious. Was she trying to kill her? The truth if she had known the mantis better, she would know that she was trying to be soft, she was usually much more brutal, she even felt a little bad about hurting her.

The vessel then fluttered her mace and generated a sharp draft that damaged Orchid and knocked her back.

"Oh no... Moon got serious," Ren said with some trepidation. "Hollow..."

"......" The knight nodded and put on a safety helmet.

Moon swung her mace and hit the ground generating an energy wave that again hurt Orchid and forced her to back up further, but at the same time this blow knocked more crystals and rocks from the ceiling. With all the material that was scattered across the battlefield, moving was already beginning to be somewhat complicated. Moon did not have many difficulties, since her battle style consisted more of staying in one place and resisting there, unlike Orchid that fought moving for all her surroundings. Also, she couldn't stay still either, falling crystals and rocks could hurt her.

The mantis stumbled through the place, dodging and deflecting projectiles with her spear, at first everything seemed to be going well, that was until Moon hit the ground again, but this time with more strengh than ever, this generated a wave of energy that cracked the ground in its path, blowing pebbles in all directions.

Orchid barely managed to dodge this attack, at least the main impact, as the flying pebbles did hit her painfully. But in the midst of its flight, a crystal stuck into one of her legs, generating a pain so sharp that moving became difficult, then she saw with horror that Moon was preparing another of her blows with the mace. Desperate, she blew one of her swirls of wind straight at her body. The vessel immediately lowered the weapon to block the attack, but then something unexpected happened. Orchid's spear dug into her hand.

The guardian tore off the spear and threw it aside, quickly and grabbed her limb complaining of pain, now she could no longer take her weapon, she needed both hands to handle it well. She looked up angrily and saw Orchid approaching now with her claws held high, ready for close combat. Moon looked at her with a slight hint of superiority, few knew it but she was also good at boxing.

What followed was the fiercest battle that the Crystal Peak dwellers would see in a long time. The two females hit each other with everything they had, neither wanted to give up, both were too stubborn to give their arm to twist, Moon's punches were painful and powerful, while Orchid's claws hurt like sandpaper. The shells of both were showing more deterioration, Moon's clothes were already a mess and had many breaks, the dust from glass and rock covered them while blood and void stains covered them both. Of course, Orchid from the adrenaline of combat did not notice how rare it was for Moon to bleed black liquid.

Ren and Hollow looked at the scene wondering if they should stop them, this was already escalating beyond what was planned, but they did not know how to intervene, they were actually somewhat scared.

Suddenly Moon hit Orchid so hard that she left her stunned and the mantis ended up falling to the ground. Tha guardian was preparing to break her to end the fight. The mantis fell, wounding her back by the pieces of glass on the floor, then she tighted her claws and picked up two large crystals.

Before Moon's fist hit her face, with a speed that only a mantis could achieve, she reached out and buried the crystal of her right hand in the vessel's arm. She writhed in pain gripping her injured limb, this hurt more than the impact of the spear. And before she could do anything else, she watched in horror as Orchid leaped on top of him and threw her to the ground, pointing the glass of her left hand straight at her neck.

"I won," she said in a serious voice.

Finally, after so many days, so many beatings, trainings and bad jokes on Ren's part, Orchid was victorious, she had defeated the mighty guardian of Crystal Peak. Unfortunately Moon was not taking it very well.

At first she seemed to hear a slight moan from the vessel, which was a little strange taking in count her lack of voice, but what really alarmed her was when she began to see the expression of grief and the black tears that were peeking from her eyes.

"Moon?" Orchid began to panic, that was not a warrior-worthy attitude, it was awkward and she didn't know how to react to it.

She came out of the guardian. Moon sat on the floor without stopping crying. She projected a really pathetic image, she inspired pity and the desire to comfort her, but the mantises were not good at that type of practice, so Orchid stayed in her place dazed not knowing what to do. Fortunately Ren came to the rescue.

"Moon, don't worry, it's all alright." The pink beetle ran to her and hugged her trying to calm her.

The guardian took him in her arms and hugged him, still crying. Other beetles soon joined in trying to calm the seemingly inconsolable shadeling.

The mantis watched the scene more and more perplexed, that was something that would never see in the tribe. Mantises always tried to hide their feelings and emotions, something like crying in front of everyone would mean the contempt of their peers, especially after losing a battle. But here, everyone was attentive and kind, even trying to cheer her up with words like "next time you will win", "it is not the end of the world", "you will have your revenge", "train harder and soon you can beat her".

The whole situation began to make her feel really bad about what had hapend. Was she crying because she had lost? Or maybe she was very hard on her? Would she have hurt her very much? Would everyone hate her now for making Moon cry?

"I ... I'm sorry ..." She stammered shyly, her eyes downcast.

Then she felt a touch on her back and when she turned to see she found her beloved knight who looked at her sympathetically with a message for her on his whiteboard.

"It is not your fault. She is scared because she feels that she failed in her duty as a guardian"

"Failed?"

"Moon hardly ever loses, and now she fears she doesn't have the strength to protect the place and her friends"

Moon was scared? Were she afraid that she would not be able to protect her friends? That seemed a ridiculous idea to her. Crystal Peak was part of the Kingdom of Hallownest Heart, under the jurisdiction of King Big, a demonically powerful monarch who had under his command some of the strongest knights she had ever known, he also had some who were not as competent but they all compensated each other. Orchid was the one who should be scared, her poor tribe had no such military might, she was the only one who had been training to reach a decent level that would allow her to face an external threat, she was the only one with the necessary strength to defeat to one of the knights of the kingdom... But Moon did not know it.

If she had no idea of the general strength of her possible enemies, it was normal for her to feel overwhelmed by the power of others, if she had to fight against another Orchid she would be defeated and all the people under her protection would be in danger. She could not afford be weak, for the sake of everyone she loved.

Orchid was moved by this thought, she understood her better than anyone, knew what it was to fear for her people, and so she felt the need to reassure her.

"Moon, calm down, you are still very strong, winning was not easy, not everyone would be able to defeat you and you have not faced any mantis, there are not many like me".

"......" She gestured, still crying.

"Moon asks if it's true that not all mantises are as strong as you are."

"Mmmm..." She didn't want to make her tribe look like a bunch of weaklings, but she didn't want to scare the girl either. "Actually... There are two others that could be as strong as me but... It is not common... Still do not worry, in this place there is nothing that interests us, we would never go near this place nor would we harm anyone. And if someone tried... I would stop them myself! Because…” She started to turn red at what she was going to say but there was no going back. "Because you are my friends ... But if anyone finds out that I said this I will beat the crap out of their lives!"

Some of those present laughed at the mantis' words, they already knew her strange contradictory character and found it very funny. But Moon remained serious, she still looked at her with some regret, but at least she calmed down, then she stood up and after a moment of doubt, hugged Orchid.

The mantis turned red, she was not used to these affectionate behaviors and she was very nervous in the face of this situation, especially having half-camp with her amused eyes fixed on her. Then, not knowing what to do, she asked Hollow for help.

"Hollow... Do something please!"

Perhaps she should have been clearer in her wishes and specified that she wanted he to get Moon off her, because instead of what she wanted, she only managed to get the knight to hug her too, raising her levels of stress and embarrassment to stratospheric amounts. Her face It was already so red with a tomato and everyone laughed at this.

"I love this girl," Ren said with a laugh.

The rest of that day and the one that followed, they took advantage of it to rest, anyway both warriors were too sore to do anything else. Even so they took the time to carry out other kinds of softer activities, such as walking and exploring the corners of the mines, where Orchid was amazed with the size of the crystals of the place, in addition to being able to meet other typical creatures of the mines, which according to her eyes would be excellent prey, but at that time she did not feel like hunting (which she never believed possible), so she just watched them from afar.

The mantis also took time to learn about the work of the mines, from chipping the glass to crushing it and packing it for use. At the end of the second day, she was able to say that she was satisfied with her visit to Crystal Peak, and found with wonder that she was so entertained those days that her libido had hardly bothered her, even at times she could be with Hollow without falling into any sexual fantasy, and when that happened, she loved being with him.

Regardless of how attractive the knight was to her, he was pleasant, attentive and friendly, sometimes somewhat awkward, but very funny. She had never felt so comfortable with someone outside her family, much less with a male. When she was with him, she felt calm and safe, as if everything was somehow okay. Orchid did not realize it, but little by little she grew fond of the knight.

On the night of the second day after the battle, the knight was in one of the staff cabins where they were staying teaching the mantis to play cards, both were having a moment of relaxation before setting off back to the castle the next day .

For Orchid the game was something very new. Playing cards were another of the many things that did not exist in the tribe, all fun was focused on some practical use, whether they were crafts that they could use in daily life, or competitions to show off their power and gaining status, the games were for baby mantises that had not yet lost their wings.

Orchid sighed thinking how much it would cost her to return to her normal life, Hallownest's heart had many things that she liked, and they had nothing to do with luxury.

She liked hugs, soft toys, non-tribal music, and now she discovered that she also liked to play. This trip had ended up being a kind of vacation, which was getting closer to the end, half of her heat had already passed.

They were about to start another card game when Ren entered the place.

"Good evening lovebirds, how is your date?"

"......?"

"What?!!"

Hollow cocked her head questioningly, while Orchid stained red and waved her arms nervously denying the beetle's claim in every possible way.

"I really love this girl." Ren seemed in as good a mood as ever. "Well, it was not my intention to interrupt them, but, it turns out, a message came from Resting Grounds".

The insect extracted from a bag that carried with him, a letter that Hollow took in his hands with interest, he took a few moments to read the content which seemed to be somewhat worrying by the expression on his face. The mantis and the miner waited expectantly for him to communicate something to them. Finally the knight put the letter away and picked up his whiteboard where he began to write a message.

"Before we go back to the palace we will have to make a detour towards Resting Grounds. Alone, the guardian of the place seems to have problems"

"I see".

Orchid couldn't tell herself that she was really sad, she could get to know a new area of Hallownest, and if it was as beautiful as the City of Tears or as the Crystal Peak, she would be delighted to visit it. Perhaps she should be concerned that they were not going for pleasure, if not to solve a problem, but she was confident that Hollow could take care of everything, whatever the enemy, he could defeat it. The poor mantis in the midst of her innocence and ignorance, had not yet learned that there were problems that could not be solved by force.

The next day, after a warm farewell from Moon and all her friends, both bugs started down the mountain. Despite the joyful atmosphere they left, there was a certain melancholy in them, especially on the part of Orchid who was particularly silent and thoughtful. Hollow seemed surprised, she was not a calm or thoughtful person, those behaviors were abnormal in her. The worried bug approached his partner.

"Something happens?

"It's nothing".

"Sure? Don't you want to talk about it?"

"It really is nothing, I was just thinking." Hollow encouraged her to continue. "It's just... After meeting Moon, I've been wondering a few things... Why am I trying to be strong?"

Hollow opened his eyes in surprise at such a question, someone so obsessed with force should have their reasons clear, or so he supposed.

"Moon... She is a good person, she is very noble, she wants to be strong to protect her loved ones but I... I have always been taught that I must be strong. It is what they taught me since I came out of my egg, that the weak are pathetic and despicable, and nobody obviously wants to be like this... I suppose it would be easy to blame my parents or society but... If I'm honest, I had another reason to want to be strong, I wanted to be able... to command, to be a Lord, to be above all others, to equal my sisters, that everyone obeyed me and admired me. If you think about it, my reason was very selfish, I was not interested in protecting anyone, I did everything for myself. Am I a bad person because of that?"

The vessel thought for a moment about what to say, it was rare for Orchid to open like that and he wanted to reciprocate her trust with a good answer. Finally he took his board and started writing.

"Many people want to have power, I think that wanting to be powerful is something almost normal. I cannot say that you are bad just because of that. The important thing is what you do with the power you obtain, not everyone is prepared to bear it, many go crazy or they become cruel. But did you never harm anyone on purpose?"

"Of course not. I loved being obeyed and admired, but beyond that, I had no more pretense. I only worried about keeping fit and being on a par with my siblings, especially Lily and Lavender. I never told you? They are from a brood and a father different from me and my... Brother. They used to say that our father was a sentimental weakling and that we inherited that defect, that's why we set out to reach the top and shut the mouth of all those who underestimated us. Hollow Do you think I'm too emotional?"

The knight was afraid to answer, because the answer would be yes and a thousand times yes. This mantis had terrible and inexplicable emotional outbursts, she enraged and embarrassed with tremendous ease for inexplicable things, but being honest, he liked she in that way. She was so expressive it was easy to know more or less what was going through her head at that moment (although not knew the cause), besides being very funny, he was never bored by her side.

"You are perfect just as you are" He opted for an indirect response.

"Sure, perfect. Emotionally, mentally weak and selfish, I am an horrible person".

"And what are you going to do? Hide yourself in a cave so that no one will ever see you again?"

"The idea doesn't sound bad," she sighed sadly. "But I can't do that. I must return to my tribe... My people need me, I must train them and make them strong, they must know how limited they are, if an overly powerful threat appeared they would be defenseless".

Hollow gave her a friendly smile and showed her his board.

"I can see that you care about your tribe, that shows that you love them and a person capable of feeling sincere love cannot be bad"

Love? Could she feel love? Mantises did not feel love, although lately it was raised that their concept of love was somewhat wrong. Before she thought that loving was acting like an idiot and doing crazy things for another bug with you wanted to have sex, but now she considered that what is commonly called love is something very different, something that little by little she began to understand.

Suddenly she felt Hollow take her claw and warmth flooded her chest.

.................................................. ....

Inside the tribe of Fungal Wastes a group of males had gathered in a secret place, hidden among huge yellow mushrooms where their fluffy hats plunged the site into darkness, distinguishing one mantis from another became a challenge for those who were observing from a distance.

"Then... It's decided..."

"Yes, the lords have weakened a lot, the escape of Orchid is proof of that. That coward preferred to escape to save her life instead of facing an honorable death as it should be for a mantis."

"It is truly regrettable."

"Things can no longer stay the same, only someone powerful can rule, and the Lord's cycle is over. New regents must emerge"

"Ah, but there are still those who support Lily and Lavender, even many males."

"But there are also many females who support our cause." Both sides seem equal, but we will show that we are superior, we will crush the weak and take power. It is already decided! After Lavender lays her eggs we will attack, she will be too weak and worried about her offsprings to resist".

"We will defeat the Lords and take the tribe to a new glory period."

"By the tribe!"

"By the tribe!" They all shouted in unison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next guardian, Alone, is another vessel created by one of my reader, and If I thought I was bad giving names, this guy surpased me.


	21. Resting Grounds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will be very awkward, discretion is recommended

Resting Grounds had changed a lot over the years, it had almost no resemblance to the desolate sanctuary of death that it was a few years ago. It was still a silent place designed to house the bodies of those who had already left this world, but now it had a friendlier aspect. Visitors arriving daily at the site had begun planting various types of flowers to decorate the graves and honor the fallen. In addition, they had erected numerous statues in honor of the Lord of Shades, the influence that the cult had on the kingdom was notorious.

Orchid looked at the statues with interest, the representations of the deity were somewhat different from those she had seen elsewhere, where he was shown as a terrifying and threatening being, with his four arms outstretched ready to tear whoever approached. Here on Resting Grounds he looked more benevolent, whit palms together as if praying seeking comfort to those who suffered from the losses.

The mantis were not in the habit of becoming so attached to their dead and they overcame the losses quickly, so it was a bit strange for Orchid such dedication to the inert bodies, but she no longer questioned it, it was simply something different from her customs. Also, it was not something that she disliked , the silence that reigned had a special mystique, the statues of the deity were very beautiful and she was enchanted with the quantity of flowers that were everywhere.

Suddenly she felt the characteristic noise of Hollow's pencil tapping against the whiteboard, he was calling her. She didn't realize she had stayed behind, it was very easy for her to distract herself observing the landscape and there was so much to see. It was not just the flowers and the graves, the people also had a special and mystical air. There were vessels on site, but these were different from the ones she had seen anywhere else, they did not have that playful and carefree air that used to characterize them, they were silent, calm and above all expressionless, they reminded her a lot of the knight the first time she had seen him.

Now that Orchid thought about it, what had happened to Hollow in all these years? How, from being an empty being without emotions, did he become the adorable individual who was always by her side and pampered her? And now that she looked at these guys here, why did they act like this? Was this their true nature? What was hollow's true nature?

The reality was that the contamination with void that the vessels had, had affected them to a different extent, at first they all acted as entities without mind or conscience, but that state was somewhat reversible, the coexistence and affection of others filled their hearts and minds leading them to be almost normal bugs. But others had not been so fortunate, they could develop their own will and desires, but they did not fully understand what affection was and had problems expressing themselves. Some of these vessels were those who had chosen to stay in the abyss. But others, in spite of everything, wanted to live on the surface and chose to stay in the calmest and quietest place in the whole kingdom. Resting Grounds.

Both of them went through the corridors full of graves and flowers, until they reached the most remote place in the huge cemetery. There, under a canopy of flowers and surrounded by books, they found the guardian.

When Orchid saw the bug, she couldn't help but be surprised and a little confused, that thing was the strangest thing she had seen in a long time.

They had a round white face with a single eye in the center and two tiny horns protruding from their head, they was dressed in a long robe that completely covered their body except for some... Tentacles? that stood out from among their clothes with which they had some books and other things clutched. What was that? She couldn't even tell if they was a male or a female, even their name was neutral unlike Chari.

Orchid did not know but they was also a vessel, one quite particular, of those who had been too contaminated by the void, so they lacked expression. Also they did not seem to have much interest in imitating normal bugs, so not even they bothered to use their limbs and pulled out void tentacles to manipulate things.

They was Alone, the lonely and reserved keeper of the Resting Grounds.

When Alone saw the newcomers, they greeted them with a slight nod and kept quietly watching them, their posture was rigid and expressionless.

Orchid was initially very nervous. Didn't the guardian like her? Or was they evaluating her? Was they planning to challenge her to a duel? If there was a fight she would not back down, she had become stronger and she wanted to demonstrate it.

But Alone showed no signs of aggression, just glanced at Hollow. He immediately knew what they wanted to say and started writing on his board.

"I'm going to talk to them alone, give me a moment please"

"Ok".

The mantis decided not to question it, it was seen that this place was very different from Crystal Peak, where everyone was friendly and warm, here instead there was only coldness and silence, perhaps due to the fact that they were guarding the dead, in reality she did not know it. She looked around and noticed a couple of vessels staring blankly at her, that was really awkward.

Meanwhile, Hollow was trying to communicate with Alone. To tell the truth, dealing with them was somewhat complicated, they were quiet even to be a vessel and it was not a good idea to press them. So he stood watching them, waiting for they to finish reading the page of their book and pay attention to him.

When Alone closed their text and looked at him, Hollow noticed that they had a kind of bandage on the left side of their face. He didn't want to ask at the time and just talked about the matter that brought him to Resting Grounds in the first place.

"(What happened? You said you had a problem and that you needed help" With Alone, it was best to speak just the necessary, their social skills were so bad that even something as simple as a greeting was complicated for them.

In response, Alone removed the patch on their face, revealing an ugly crack from which void dripped.

"Who... Who did that to you?!"

Hollow looked very alarmed, although his sibling was an absolute pacifist, it was not that they did not know how to fight, and if someone had been able to cause them such damage it was somewhat worrying.

"(A white thief, looks for the legacy of the moths and...)" After saying that, they covered the crack in their mask again.

"(You don't need to explain more, I understand. You want to catch the thief)"

Alone did not answer, just touched the mask and rubbed it gently while looking down.

(Isn't that it? Uh... you want to repair your mask?") Alone stared at Hollow sharply. "(I think I understand. You want to go to Deepnest to see the mask maker to have yours repaired, but you cannot leave the Resting Grounds unguarded and need to be replaced while you go about your business.)"

It might seem strange that Hollow drew so many conclusions with so few gestures, but he was already used to the particular communication with the vessel, which always reduced all their messages to the smallest expressions, without decorations or unnecessary words.

"(Okay, Orchid and I will stay guarding the cemetery while you return, I don't think it will take more than one night, right?)"

Alone did not answer, just turned their head and fixed their eye on the mantis that was nearby smelling some flowers and enjoying its softness, she looked happy. Hollow also watched her for a moment and sighed with glee, she loved seeing Orchid enjoying those little pleasures she seemed to have been denying herself for so long, she was so beautiful that he felt like he could watch her for hours.

But he tore his gaze away from her suddenly when he felt that there were now some eyes hanging on him. Alone and their two assistant vessels were staring blankly at him, though given the situation he could assume they were curious.

"(Eh... She is Orchid, she is a mantis that I am taking care of during this month, she is quite strong, she is a good fighter, she will be useful helping me protect the place)". He said with some nervousness.

"(You look at her weird)"

"(Weird? What do you mean?)"

"(I do not understand)"

Hollow wanted to ask what he did not understand, but he noticed a certain discomfort in Alone, They probably did not understand what they did not understand. He sighed somewhat overwhelmed, dealing with them was always a bit stressful, the worst thing was that for him it was also stressful, not by chance they had chosen to be the guardian of the quietest and loneliest area of the kingdom.

Knowing that he could no longer exchange words with his sibling, he went to Orchid and tapped his pencil against the whiteboard immediately drawing her attention.

"What's wrong Hollow?"

"We'll be taking care of the Resting Grounds for tonight, Alone has to go out and do some things"

"Ah... Okay." She looked at the vessel and with some nerves made a gentle nod in greeting.

The vessel looked at her for a moment and then started to walk away from them without making any other gesture. The mantis got angry thinking they had ignored her, but the knight was quick to calm her down.

"Don't take it personally, they is like that, they is something strange"

"Mmph," Orchid snorted annoyed as she crossed her arms. "If you say so. Even though there was easy to say hello. Anyway, where are we going to stay tonight?"

Hollow had to think about it for a moment. Resting Grounds was primarily a cemetery, it did not really have houses or shelters to sleep. The vessels in charge of taking care of the site did not need these luxuries, they did not eat, they did not bathe (Although they cleaned their masks and cloaks), they did not sleep in beds. When night fell they took off their masks and wandered around the cemetery in shadowy ways, greatly contributing to the spread of rumors of spirits roaming the place. Taking all this into account, they did not have the comforts Hollow would like to provide to Orchid, but somehow he would manage, anyway the mantis was not very picky nor a lover of luxuries, she could sleep on the floor without major problems, but it had a somewhat more comfortable place than the rock floor.

"We will stay at the seer's home"

"The seer? Another inhabitant of this place?" Hollow hesitated a moment before answering.

"The seer was an old moth that had her house here, but she died a few years ago, although her home is still there" In reality, more than dying, the correct term would be she transcended to another reality, but it was something difficult to explain.

"I see. Guide my steps".

Hollow led the mantis through some steep boulders and rocks to the highest part of the cemetery where there were several abandoned caves, when they reached the top of the climb, they entered the last cave they found, and to their surprise, this was much more welcoming than a normal cave. There was a plush carpet covering the floor and lots of fluffy cushions scattered all over the place, you could see some dusty furniture cornered near the cave walls and many luminary lamps that had lost their shine long ago.

"It's a little dirty but... I can sleep here I suppose... Although if you allow me I'll clean the place a bit before occupying it."

Hollow waved his hand, implying that she could do whatever she wanted.

Orchid then cleaned the room, removing dust from the furniture and shaking the cushions. It seemed incredible to her that the guest room was in such a bad state. Were they really so rude to visitors? No one had told her that in that place, there simply were no bedrooms.

When Orchid finished she went out to look for Hollow, she thought that the knight would have gone to clean his own room which would be one of the other caves she could see out there, but to her surprise he was in a high area watching the territory in silence.

"Hey... Have you finished cleaning your room yet?"

"...?" He cocked his head, wondering what she meant by that.

"I already cleaned the room where I'm going to stay. Was your room as dirty as mine?" The vessel took out his whiteboard and started writing on it.

"There are no more rooms in the Resting Grounds, this place is a cemetery, we are going to sleep together tonight"

That was like a bucket of cold water for Orchid. That must be a joke! She couldn't sleep with Hollow! It never occurred to her that she was not going to have a private room, after all, in Crystal Peak they offered her that and many other comforts.

But the situation at Crystal Peak was very different from the Resting Grounds. When Orchid arrived at the place, everyone noticed the cloth hanging from her waist and immediately knew that she was in heat, so they gave her a private room to sleep and placed Vervela branches on the door and in the window to neutralize the pheromones. In this way the mantis could rest assured that she would not attract any unwanted visitors and would be free to do as she pleased when she was alone.

But now it was her turn to share a room with Hollow. Was it possible to sleep with him next her? The mere fact that he touched her made her mind explode in a thousand fiery fantasies. How could she bear to sleep next to him? With his body a few inches from her, within reach of her claws to touch and hug him as much as she wanted. Just thinking about it already made her temperature rise. The worst thing is that having him next to her, she could not even touch herself to ease her desires a little. It was hell.

But apparently Hollow did not care, of course, he was incompatible with her, so her pheromones did not affect him, but as impossible as it was that they had children toghether, she could not help but feel attracted to him, and this distressed her. She should make him sleep outside, out of sheer courtesy she should have the privilege of having the room to herself, but she had no heart to expel her knight. Slowly all of her concerns were starting to show on her face and Hollow began to worry.

"What's up Orchid? Do you have a problem?"

"I have a problem? This is serious?!" Orchid's nerves were beginning to alter. "How the hell do you expect me to sleep next to you! And don't play innocent! You know I'm in heat!! Everything affects me, and yet you subject me to these uncomfortable situations, you are very cruel..."

Again the mantis' emotional outbursts were beginning to affect her, but this time she wasn't expressing rage, rather grief and anguish. Orchid was trying her best to hold back the tears, but she couldn't help Hollow noticing. The knight felt disoriented and somewhat confused, he still had trouble understanding what the heat meant for a female and he was not very clear why Orchid had problems with having him by her side, but she had said something about that she could not sleep. Did helping her with sleeping would make her better? He would do what was necessary to avoid seeing her sad, it broke his heart to have her crying.

Without saying a word, the knight ran until he was lost in the sea of tombs that were everywhere. Orchid didn't know what was going through his head but was relieved that he was going away. At least that way she could cry without anyone seeing her, or at least calm down a bit.

She spent the afternoon alone, wondering if she had done something wrong, in her eyes she had only exposed the truth, but perhaps she had hurt Hollow in some way and that's why he had left her alone for so long. It was close to bedtime and she was beginning to get anxious. What if something had happened to him? What if he had abandoned her? At least she already knew how to get to the White Palace by herself using the Stag station, but if she arrived alone, what would they think of her? Perhaps they even believed that she had eaten him.

Suddenly she began to hear the sound of footsteps and her antennas became alert. She looked at where the sound came from and was relieved when she saw Hollow walking slowly toward her. She was about to scream in frustration, but she managed to control herself. It was then that she noticed that Hollow brought with him some dead prey and a bunch of branches from a plant she did not know. Seeing that, she suddenly remembered that she was hungry.

"Where have you been all afternoon?" She tried very hard to hide her joy with an annoyed expression.

Hollow sighed and first busied himself with arranging what he had brought with him before picking up his whiteboard and answering.

"I went to find some herbs to help you sleep and while I was there I caught something for dinner"

"Oh I see, thanks." Orchid immediately softened her countenance.

After that they built a fire and dined quietly, although it was a silent and somewhat uncomfortable dinner. Orchid was upset with him for not leaving the room to herself and Hollow didn't understand anything. He was even beginning to wonder if Orchid hated him now, for some reason that idea scared him and caused him pain.

Once they finished eating, Orchid ate the herbs to sleep, unfortunately it were very bitter, but she preferred this to a night in hell. At least the plants worked well and half an hour after eating it, she started to feel sleepy, it wasn't long before she fell asleep next to her knight in the seer's old home.

It was already the middle of the night, everything seemed calm in the cemetery, only the shadows of Alone's assistants who were watching roamed the place, in case they saw something strange they should notify Hollow immediately.

Meanwhile, the knight slept peacefully, with nothing to disturb his sleep, he was comfortable and warm in the shelter, with numerous pillows available to hug and a plush carpet as a bed, nothing should have interrupted his rest, but nevertheless, he saw himself forced to wake up.

Hollow was startled when he felt a pair of claws around his waist, he might have reacted aggressively, but a soft growl alerted him to the identity of the owner of these limbs.

He was reassured to know that it was Orchid, who was hugging him while he slept, that was not something he had to worry about, in fact it even seemed cute to him, she showed affection while she slept, perhaps she would even be dreaming of him.

"Mmng.... Hollow..."

Curiously his assumption turned out to be correct, Orchid was dreaming of him and this made him happy. After so much, he finally gained the love of the mantis, now she loved him so much that she hugged him affectionately, perhaps she even hugged him in her dream. What was she dreaming of? The truth, it made him somewhat curious and he wanted to get into her dream world, so he started looking among his things and took out the old dreamnail he was taking care of. It was a somewhat dangerous element, and partly for that reason He had self-declared its guardian. He normally didn't use it because Hornet had taught him that it was rude to spy on the thoughts of others, but now he was tempted. Orchid was dreaming about him. Didn't he have a right to see what it was about? It was something that directly involved him.

Even he realized that it was a silly excuse, but that was not going to stop him. He was about to enter the mind of the mantis, when she squeezed him pulling him towards her, then placed her legs on top immobilizing him.

This was already starting to stop being tender and bordering on the uncomfortable, he liked being close to the mantis but this was too much. So he began to shake trying to get the female off him, even ended up trying to make sudden movements to Waking her up, but it only made her squeeze him more and growl a little. Hollow wanted to scream, but he was beginning to notice that even that would be useless, Orchid was drugged under the effects of the sleeping plant, she was not going to wake up so easy.

He was considering how to wriggle out of her grasp when he noticed Orchid begin to move her claws rubbing his shell. For some reason this made him turn red, somehow it was nice to be caressed that way, but at the same time it caused him embarrassment, nobody invaded his personal space that way and he had not authorized her. But the thing began to getting worse, Orchid's claws began to go down his body while continuing to rub, Hollow stiffened, the touch of the mantis was cheeky and provocative, lowering more and more, until she reached that private area where she began to search what Hollow didn't have.

That had already been too much for him, with a sudden movement he removed Orchid's claws from the place ready to get out of there immediately, but the result was different from what was expected. The mantis hugged him again and this time she pressed her body fully against him, curving her tail forward and tucking it between his legs in a way he wouldn't think possible.

Hollow was dizzy with embarrassment and discomfort, Orchid had him imprisoned and she was groping his whole body shamelessly and there was no way to stop her, she was too asleep. Now he was beginning to wonder if this was the reason she seemed reluctant to sleep with him. Did she always behave like this while she slept? No wonder she wanted a private room, he had to give her the shelter, he had to stay outside and leave her alone, everything had a reason for being.

Things got worse when Orchid's tail started rubbing against his crotch, this was so embarrassing that he wanted the earth to swallow him, probably if Orchid found out what she had done, she would dig the hole herself to bury herself.

"Hmmmnn.... Hollow..."

She kept dreaming about him, now Hollow didn't want to get into her dreams anymore, in fact the idea scared him. How much more would he have to put up with all this? He was concerned that he was beginning to have some somewhat strange sensations that he had trouble identifying. To tell the truth, being touched by Orchid was not entirely unpleasant, it only bothered him to have that tail between his legs moving, so he decided to put it aside.

He grabbed Orchid's tail and pushed it back, the mantis yelled at this. At first he was scared to think that he had hurt her, but it was not the case, in fact she looked relaxed and happy. He managed to glimpse her smiling face with her eyes closed, also had her legs open leaving her tail absolutely visible.

Hollow debated between what he considered correct and what he wanted. Hornet had already told him that he should not touch the tail of the females, but he liked it, for reasons that he was not able to understand, and now she was practically offering herself ¿ Maybe it wouldn't hurt to touch a little bit?

He extended his hands and caressed the area tenderly, immediately drawing a sigh and an exclamation of pleasure from the mantis, which encouraged him to continue. He touched Orchid as much as he wanted, traversed every inch of her tail and delighted in the texture of her skin. 

Suddenly he felt Orchid's claws on his shell again, he thought a little about the situation and decided to leave her do what she wanted. Since he was touching her, she had the same right, he even lay down next to her to be easily within reach.

Sharing caresses in that way had a special mystique, touching and being touched in some way made them closer, as if the barriers between them slowly blurred. Hollow was enjoying the moment, suddenly Orchid's touch was no longer so annoying or awkward, it was even desirable. He wanted to extend the moment as much as possible, but all this had to end at some point.

Orchid's movements became smoother and slower, until finally they stopped and only the gentle rise and fall of her chest remained as she breathed.

Hollow sighed in disappointment, he wanted them to continue for a while longer, after all, this was a new experience for him, but he was not going to push her, not that he could considering that she was asleep, so he placed next to her and stayed looking at her with dreamy eyes. A loud sigh from Orchid cut the silence and a couple of words were carelessly thrown into the wind.

"I love you Hollow..."

The vessel felt that he ran out of air when hearing that. His eyes widened with shock and he looked everywhere, not knowing what to do. Orchid said she loved him? Was this true? To tell the truth, for some time now he also felt that he liked the mantis but had not dared to put his feelings into words, he supposed that the mantis would reject him (and he was right). But she had taken the first step, she loved him.

He rolled into place feeling butterflies of excitement in his stomach, that was too good to be true. And in fact it was, Hollow's little common sense hadn't made him think it illogical to take seriously a declaration of love made by a sleeping and above all drugged person.

But oblivious to this, he built a thousand castles in the air, dreaming of walks holding hands, romantic dinners and pillow fights... Especially the latest.

This is how, immersed in a thousand happy thoughts, he fell asleep, being this time he the one who hugged the mantis.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Touching someone without their consent is wrong, but the characters in the stories don't always do the right thing. This is classified as mature content but I do not rule out the possibility that someone too young will read this.
> 
> With this I finished my translations, now I will start writing new chapters.


	22. Snack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is somewhat confusing, I will try to clarify everything in the endnotes, and if you still have any questions, you can ask in the comments

_The mantis was exhausted, her body trembled and she was barely able to stand up, her gasps were loud and agitated, everything in her denoted her tiredness, however even when she only wanted to collapse on the ground, the ropes that were tied in her arms held her upright._

_She had lived an intense and unforgettable experience, her beloved knight had showered her with attention, touched every inch of her body exciting her until it was almost unbearable, but she had not been able to respond in any possible way, since the ropes that held her prevented all movement. She had become a helpless prey at the mercy of her predator, an inconceivable humiliation especially for a lord, and yet... She had liked it._

_She had loved every moment, every touch, she felt in the clouds, nothing could break the magic of that moment, or so she believed._

_"Friend, you really are crazy."_

_A small but very close voice suddenly surprised her. She looked somewhat scared around her until she noticed with horror how a boy entered her field of vision. He was very small, perhaps a little larger than the knight when she first met him, he was some kind of winged insect, presumably a very hairy white moth, his fur collar was huge and fluffy, it made her want to touch it. The tips of his legs also had fur, in fact they simulated a pair of shoes, he even had a fur pompom at the tip of his tail. Only a scarlet mask covering half of his face stood out in all his whiteness._

_The mantis looked at the insect speechlessly. Had he seen what the knight had done to her? What was that boy doing there?! Where were his parents?_

_"If you wonder, yes, I saw everything," He laughed derisively. "Ah, but don't worry, it is not the worst thing I have seen, after all, when you get into the dreams of others, you risk these things happening"._

_From the pure impression, Orchid was unable to articulate a word. Get into the dreams of others? What was this bug talking about? She couldn't help but get a little scared when she saw the boy approach her._

_"You're scared of me? Wow, that hardly ever happens". The moth seemed to rejoice at this. "But it is a good change, when you are someone so small, everyone is scary, being me who commands respect feels great. You know? A long time ago I was a companion to a rather hateful mantis, the guy was terrifying and he belittled me for being small, if he saw me now he would surely be impressed"._

_The bug puffed up his chest in a posture of pride that offended Orchid for some reason. Did that furball brag about scaring a mantis? And did he plan to show it off in front of another mantis? She couldn't allow it!_

_"Who's afraid of you!? Don't you dare insinuate such stupidity! Damn brat! Where are your parents letting you wander around watching adult stuff?"_

_Orchid's words bothered the moth a lot, in fact it became furious at them, his white fur began to fluff up giving him more and more the appearance of a ball. The insect then took flight and positioned himself at the prisoner's height, looking directly into her eyes with fury._

_"I AM AN ADULT!" Look! I have wings! WINGS! Adult moths have wings, caterpillars don't! I'm an adult! A small adult but an adult! I already had my last molting, I am already independent, I have already done adult things. I even had a girlfriend! Don't ever treat me like a child again!"_

_The Lord maintained a serious expression, although inside she was dying of laughter, there was something about this bug that inspired sympathy and seeing that fluffy furball trying to cause respect was funny. It really was hard to believe that he was an adult, he was tiny, hunting such a being would not be worth it, underneath all that hair there would be almost no meat and in any case, with the cute he was, she liked him more alive than dead. After all this she reprimanded herself mentally, she had to give up the habit of evaluating weak insects as prey._

_"Well, you're an adult, it's clear to me." You could tell she was trying to contain her laughter._

_"Don't make fun of me!"_

_"I don't... Or at least I try... On the other hand, who do I have the pleasure to talk to?"_

_"With Snack." The mantis blinked blankly. "Snack. S-N-A-C-K, that's what my name is"._

_This was too much, the mantis burst out laughing, if she wasn't tied she would be clutching her stomach trying to contain herself._

_"It is not my fault that my master named me like this! Well, considering that his original plan was to eat me, it is logical that he did not give me a better name, and by the time he decided I could join the troop it was too late to change my name". A slight blush managed to sneak through the whiteness of his face._

_"Well, Mr. Snack, what brings you here? What has made you dare to get into my private life and spy on what I do when I am alone?"_

_The mantis gave the moth a lethal glance, but he was not affected, it overflowed with confidence and perhaps some arrogance, this bothered her a little, it was unusual for a prey to show so little respect._

_"Believe me, if I could have avoided it I would have, I am not amused to witness the wicked fantasies of anyone, but somehow I always end up in these messes Ugh..." He sighed. "The thing is, I accidentally got into your dreams, but it was unintentional. I was walking through the cemetery when I felt a curious energy coming from a cave in the highest part, I flew there and found two sleeping insects holding each other, and to my surprise, among them was a strange artifact, the goal of all my journey and my search. The dreamnail! I was going to take it but I was very careless, I must have worn gloves or something. As soon as I touched the weapon, I was transported to this dream and as always I ended up witnessing something that I did not want". He grabbed his forehead with one of his hands. "Why do I always have to see these things?"_

_"Wait a minute, you just told me this is a dream..."_

_"Oh yes, a dream created by your mind, or would that person you dreamed of do everything that did to you in real life?"_

_The nebula in Orchid's mind seemed to clear and she became aware of her surroundings and her situation, she was dreaming, it was all just a product of her imagination. Immediately the ropes that tied her arms disappeared and the mantis fell sitting on the ground, then she clutched her head in horror at the thought of everything that had happened, she had dreamed of that, she had wished it, she was a damn sick woman with wicked desires._

_"Hey... It's not to make you mortify yourself so much," said the moth, seeing her so affected. "I mean, you don't hurt anyone and it's your problem what you like, nobody has to criticize you"._

_"I like an insect that is not a mantis!" She cried with teary eyes._

_"Uh... is that what you're worried about?"_

_"And what did you think I was worried about?"_

_"......I think you and I have somewhat different ideas... Let's see... You are concerned about being attracted to a bug that is not a mantis..."_

_"It is an horrible thing."_

_"Please... It's not the most common but it's not a bad thing either, I myself had a girlfriend who was a dragonfly." Orchid shot him a look of disbelief. "Yes, it's true... She abandoned me for being so tiny but ... I don't want to talk about it. The thing is that, there is nothing wrong with loving someone of another species, it is true that crossbreed children may suffer rejection or some difficulties, but I have met couples who simply do not have children among them and have been able to have happy lives"._

_"But that's taboo! It's kind of gross!"_

_"Why is it gross?"_

_"Because... Because it is..."_

_"Because it's what you've been told all your life." Orchid looked at him in surprise. "Yes, I imagined that. Look, who you pair up with is your business, as long as you do not harm anyone, no one can say anything. You can be with whoever you want and there is nothing wrong with it, if you are worried about having crossbreed children, don't have children with your mate, you can adopt, or have on your own with another mantis and raise them between the two, many do that too"._

_"You make it sound so easy, but if they find out about this in my tribe they will kill me."_

_"Then don't come back to your tribe."_

_Orchid looked at him murderously and stood up showing her full height. Snack was intimidated to see such aggressiveness in the insect and backed away as a precaution._

_"How dare you... how can you even hint at that! I am a Lord! I have responsibility to my people! I am one of the leaders. I must return! I have to do it!"_

_"But you don't want to... do you?"_

_Orchid was speechless at that, that damn moth seemed to be able to see through her, he had guessed her biggest problem and conflict, she was torn between her heart and her sense of duty. She liked the free life in Hallownest, but she also worried about her people. She tried with all her might to deny herself any possibility of being with their knight, she repeated to herself over and over that it was something dirty, bad, impossible. But now this moth came to say that she could be with him, that there was nothing wrong with it, it only made it more difficult for her to remain firm in her convictions._

_"Go away.... Get out of here! Get out of my dream! Go before I kill you!"_

_"Uh... First of all, I doubt you can kill me in this place, let's say I have some control over people's dreams, and secondly, I would go if I could but... I'm trapped, the power I have It is not enough to get out of here so... We will stay together until you wake up... Hehehe"._

_Orchid clenched her claws in frustration and looked at the bug with hatred. She tried to focus on waking up to get out of that bitter dream, but she wasn't sure how to do it._

_"Are you trying to wake up?" I don't think you can do it in the usual way, I noticed that there were remains of a certain plant to sleep, you are drugged, you will not be able to wake up until its effect passes"._

_"Damn! Isn't there a way to wake up or get rid of you?"_

_"Well... There is a way, if you were very scared, let's say with a nightmare, you could free yourself from this dream. Unfortunately I am not very good at causing nightmares, my friend Scarlet was good at it. I am more skilled at creating pleasant dreams... But I can try some things... Tell me what scares you the most?"_

_"A warrior mantis is not afraid!" She said proudly._

_"That's a vile lie, we all have fears. Maybe... Are you afraid of losing someone you love?" He noted a slight discomfort on Orchid's face. "Yes, it hurts us all to lose someone we love, but surely there is something more. You are proud from what I see, I met a bee that was like you, she had a good heart, but she was haughty, she liked to be obeyed, it hurt her very much to give the reason to others, for those types of people, humiliation is the worst"._

_The mantis was immediately on guard annoyed by the hints the moth gave her, but he did not stop._

_"But... There is something that is terrible for any mantis, and it is the idea of being weak. Yes, the mantis I told you about was like this, the idea of being crushed by a weak being is your worst nightmare..." Orchid was more and more nervous. What was this bug trying to do? "Well, I think I already have the ingredients, according to Scarlet to make a good nightmare, first put all the fears together, then you set a stage, you place the artists and then... You dance!"_

_Snack held up a hand and elegantly snapped his fingers, a white fire appeared out of nowhere and flooded the entire site with a blinding glow that forced the mantis to close her eyes._

_By the time she reopened them, the place looked different, from being a hazy, shapeless environment, now it had a more concrete look, a kind of huge, glowing white coliseum, full of audience, which consisted of many mantises looking at the battle ground with piercing and serious faces, and in front of all of them, in the seats in front were Lily and Lavender, the two Lord._

_"What... what is all this?" The warrior looked confused._

_"I'm not done yet."_

_Snack flapped his wings and white fire emerged from them, which went towards a corner of that coliseum where it formed a burning ball that when dissipated revealed the presence of Hollow, who was tied hanging from a stick, below him was a well full of sharp thorns. If the knight fell on them, his body would be shattered._

_"Well, here it is, Scarlet sure would have done better, but this is what I can within my means. Welcome to your worst nightmare" he said, spreading his arms._

_"What does this all mean?"_

_"I'm going to scare you so much that you'll wake up. Here are all your fears. I snatched your partner from his dream and brought him here, now he is there hanging in danger of death, to save him you must fight in front of all your tribe and your family, but you will be defeated and humiliated in the worst way, your suffering will be infinite"._

_"And who am I going to fight against?"_

_"Well, against me," Snack puffed out his chest proudly and Orchid laughed._

_"This is serious? Are you my great opponent? I think your nightmare attempt will not work well"._

_"Sure it will," he snorted annoyed. "If I am the one who defeats you, a tiny moth, the humiliation will be worse, just imagine it"._

_"Uh... Orchid, be careful, a moth in a dream can be very dangerous," Hollow said from his hanging position._

_The warrior blinked in surprise. Hollow had spoken? And his voice was beautiful! Clear and youthful._

_"Hollow speaks!" Orchid exclaimed happily, wagging her tail._

_"Well, this is a dream, whatever you want can happen in dreams... Orchid beware!"_

_The mantis' trained senses allowed her to dodge the light dagger that narrowly pierced her head in time._

_"But what..."_

_Suddenly she noticed that Snack floated above her head. The insect had a ball of light held in his hands and was looking at her with a hint of mockery that bothered her a lot._

_"You don't know how much fun this is." He tossed the ball of light from his hands against Orchid, who was barely able to dodge the explosion. "In real life everyone sees me as a weak and pathetic creature who doesn't deserve attention, nobody cares about what I'm capable of, they just see my size and they immediately despise me"._

_You could guess a certain resentment in Snack, which in part seemed to be manifesting in his attacks on Orchid. The bug flapped his wings and a series of lights appeared from the floor that the mantis dodged as a precaution, which was positive because of each beam of Light emerged a sharp dagger that could have shattered her body._

_"But they don't know about my power, they don't know everything I can do. If I wanted I could make them my slaves, flood their dreams with illusions..." Snack hit his palms and a light bomb exploded next to Orchid who was quite damaged for it. "Yes Yes! When I'm here I can do whatever I want, I can be the one in command. Feel what it's like to be terrified of a greater power! Do you feel it, mantis? I love having the big bugs at my mercy, showing them what it feels like to be a prey"._

_"You're a bloody sadistic bug!" The mantis screamed, standing up to escape a flock of white fire butterflies that Snack was expelling._

_"I'm not a bloody sadistic" he said with a creepy sweet smile. "I am a charming bug, in fact, I am always very kind to those who treat me well, for something I love so much the master and Scarlet that I would whatever for them, and it is for them that I look for the dreamnail..."_

_Hollow was witnessing the scene helplessly, his restraints were too tight for escape and that moth seemed to be in complete control of the dream. It was terrifying, somehow this reminded him of his childhood battle with The Radiance, this insect seemed to have the same kind of power, albeit weaker. On the other hand, he also seemed much more reasonable than the goddess, at least he was not trying to kill anyone, according to him his objective was to scare Orchid to wake her, theoretically that would not have to cause any harm, but it did not prevent it from being painful to see her tormented._

_On the other hand there was something that was beginning to worry him more and more, the moth had mentioned someone named Scarlet. It was not such a strange name, in fact he knew at least two Scarlets, but the mention of this name along with the word master stirred old memories inside, he could not help but think of Grimm and his daughter who bore the same name . In addition, this insect had a certain air of elegance, each time he invoked an attack, he accompanied it with a dance step, the way he bowed his head or moved his hands reminded him more and more of the bat, even the white fire moths he summoned were very similar to Grimm's fire bats. Would he have learned it from him?_

_Was it possible that the master and Scarlet he mentioned were the same ones he knew? Could it be that after so many years fate would wants he to hear about them again? After breaking the anchor he spent a lot of anguish wondering how they would be, if they would still be alive, if they would have suffered a lot or if they would remember something about him. But this moth apparently had the answer to all his questions, he would finally know what happened to his little protégé and his father._

_"Hey! Moth!" Hollow yelled from his place._

_"Hush bug, I'm busy and my name is Snack," he said as he summoned more fire moths._

_"Snack! Please answer! The Scarlet you're talking about is a bat with fire powers?"_

_Immediately the insect ceased his attacks and turned to face the bug that was hanging above the well of thorns. He flew up to him and caught up to his gaze. Orchid fearing that he was going to do him some harm and with her heart in her throat from the anguish she ran to them, but the moth with a snap of his fingers made appear a grating of light in front of the mantis stoping her advance. The Lord watched helplessly as the insect was in front of her beloved who was tied and unable to defend himself, now that she knew the power of this madbug she was afraid, much more afraid, more than she remembered ever feeling._

_He was very sorry to have looked at this creature with contempt, she promised herself that she would never do it again, she would respect every being, whether it was a prey or not, she just wanted to make sure that Hollow was going to be fine. Orchid extended her claws through the grating trying to reach them, but they were too far for her, all she could do was listen to the exchange of words they both had._

_"Will it be possible? Did you know Scarlet?"_

_"And Grimm."_

_"You know the name of the master! Are you a friend of his? A friend of the master is a friend of mine"._

_"Well... It's not like we're really friends... In fact I think the last time we saw each other we weren't on very good terms." The last time Hollow saw Grimm before Brumm urged him to break anchor. It was at the ritual dance, and at that moment he was somewhat angry with him for certain events that had occurred with Scarlet._

_"Really? Well... Come to think of it, the master never mentioned that he knew a shadow"._

_"Shadow?"_

_"You are one of those shadows that inhabit this kingdom, right? They pretend to be normal bugs, but under their masks there is only darkness, although they are not really bad. Years ago I came with a group of explorers to tour this place when it was withered and infected, and among my companion there were two creatures of the same type that you, both very nice, very small and very silent... Very different from you from what I see"._

_"Well... We call ourselves shadelings and explaining what we are is somewhat complex but... That's not important now. I want to know how Scarlet and her father are. What has become of them in all these years?"_

_"You..." Snack looked at Hollow with an air of suspicion. Aren't you by chance someone from that distant past that neither of them can remember?"_

_"Do they not remember their past?" Nothing at all? Don't they remember when they were at Hallownest? All the things we went through together? Don't they remember the flame ritual? The Nightmare King?"_

_"You... You know about the Nightmare King!" There was a certain fury in Snack's voice when he mentioned that god. "You know that bastard! Will you not be related to him?"_

_"No!"_

_"I also note that you are asking particular questions about Scarlet." The moth looked more and more suspicious. "What is your link to Scarlet? Who are you?"_

_"Someone who loves her very much."_

_There were a lot of feelings put into Hollow's voice, plus a very heartfelt expression in his gaze, his words were true, Snack had no doubts, he loved Scarlet and would never hurt his best friend. Maybe he would help to solve the problem with the Nightmare King?_

_Snack was about to say something when his antennas caught a certain irregularity in the environment. Hollow and the moth noticed that everything in this place was beginning to wobble and the lighting flickered._

_Snack looked at the mantis and noticed the deep look of sadness in her eyes._

_"Ah... So that's your biggest fear..."_

................................

Orchid woke up feeling a little dazed, her head was spinning and she had a heaviness in her body, it was still too early for her to get up, but she didn't want to go back to sleep, she was scared. She turned her head hoping to find the sleeping knight beside her, hoping his closeness would reassure her and dispel the shadows of the strange dream she had had, because of course, it had all been nothing more than a dream.

But to her surprise, Hollow was not asleep, he was sitting looking at the door of the shelter. The mantis puzzled by this, brought her trembling claw closer to him and tugged on his cloak. Immediately the knight turned to see her and she noted with anguish that he was crying.

"Hollow... what..."

But he did not answer or make an attempt to do so, he stood up and left the seer's house. Orchid wanted to follow him, but the dizziness and stupor caused by the sleeping plants stoped her. As soon as she tried to stand up she ended up falling face down on the carpet.

The mantis was very confused. Why was Hollow crying? Had something happened during the night that left him this affected? The image of him pleading to know about Scarlet and the words of love he dedicated to her came to her mind, she remembered his look of concern and longing and his pleas for information about her. She shook her head, shooing away all those crazy ideas. It had only been a dream, a product of her imagination, none of it had been real...

Suddenly she noticed something strange on the carpet floor.

White hairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The previous part of this series is "Hallownest Tales". In that fic Hollow had a whole complex and emotional story along with Grimchild, who in that story is called Scarlet. The situation between them culminates with a separation that leaves some unfinished points. The thing is that after this fic I would like to make another one that takes up those points and ends them. But first I have to plant the seeds of that story, I don't want Grimm troupe come to Hallownest by chance, I want there to be a reason, and that reason is Snack.
> 
> Regarding Snack, I created him a long time ago and he always had his determined role, but I did not use him only for this fic, he is also the character I use in a Hollow Knight role-playing in which I participate. In that game Snack explores Hallownest during the infection period alongside other adventurers, and those adventurers are the bugs he mentions in this chapter.


	23. Looking for Calm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a small error was detected by a reader on wattpad, I made a few edits in some previous chapters, specifically the chapters: "Quiet Days", "Crystal Peak" and "The Three Children"

I never thought I would feel this for a creature like her, or for anyone really. After the Pale King saved my life that fateful day, I had decided to dedicate all my devotion to him, make him the reason for my existence, being his knight was my only wish... Until another wish got in the way. Clover, that clumsy mantis, so sweet and so fierce, so dedicated to battle and so hungry for love. The mantis society seems to be very cold and she too warm, she is always by my side crying out for my attention and that only makes her more adorable. Oh my dear Clover! This can be dangerous.

Ogrim maintains that his majesty will not approve of our relationship, it is very dangerous to be romantically involved with the enemy, and the only thing that maintains an apparent peace between our kingdoms is a treatment as delicate as a flower, a false step and blood will stain the earth. Will our romance turn into a tragedy? Given the circumstances, perhaps the best thing for us would be to flee together, to my homeland. I would love to show her the beautiful field of flowers that surrounds my town, I have brought some seeds that I have started to cultivate, but it will never be the same as seeing that idyllic landscape.

However, before leaving, Clover has expressed her desire to say goodbye to her people, it is a fair thing, leaving the country and the family is not something simple. In a few days, when everything is ready, we will go to my homeland.

My beloved king, please forgive me, forgive my selfishness and my lies, I will not stay by your side until the end as I said. I go with my beloved to a far and safe place, where the influence of the goddess does not reach us . I wish with all my heart that her kingdom prosper, even if I am no longer in it.

.................................................. .

Hollow sighed as he read the last entry in Ze'mer's diary. The knight undoubtedly wrote much better than she spoke, she had related in a beautiful way how step by step the relationship between her and Clover had emerged, it was a very beautiful story, full with feelings. But the story ended at this point, when they both decided to go together to another kingdom, it seemed the perfect ending to a love story, unfortunately he knew the epilogue.

When they went to bid farewell to the mantis, the tribe would not accept their relationship due to the knight's foreign nature and would murder Clover. Ze'mer thanks to her talent and strength would manage to escape, but she would not return to her position as defender of the king, she would seclude herself in the farthest corner of the kingdom behind Restlands, where she would spend her last years crying for her love.

He closed the diary and left it in its place, at that moment he only wanted to distract his mind thinking about anything happy, but having taken the diary of the knight was not a good idea, now he felt hid mood more gloomy than before. The reminder of Clover's sad fate was the harbinger of the bleak future that awaited Orchid if she became romantically involved with him, but of course Hollow didn't want her to die. He couldn't allow it! He couldn't fail again!

He was unable to save Myla, and although he was able to free Scarlet and her father from their bondage to the nightmare heart, the price to pay was their memories. As a knight he was useless at crucial moments. What good was a knight who could not help a damsel in distress? The worst part is that Scarlet seemed to have some kind of problem that required the dream nail, and he couldn't help her, the winged furball had vanished along with his only chance of hearing from them.

Now to make matters worse, the only thing he could do when he woke up and realized his situation was to start crying in the most pathetic way, he even ignored Orchid when she called him and as a coward he went to hide in Ze'mer's refuge, where the mantis could not find him.

He already had a calmer head, after much thought he concluded that there was nothing he could do about the little bat, just wait in case fate would make their paths cross again. Meanwhile, all he could deal with was the mantis problem. He had been so happy when she said that she loved him that he had not taken into account the possible consequences of this, he knew the story of Ze'mer and her lover, Ogrim had told him about it, but now when he found the journal and read it, reality hit him with all its weight. Orchid was in danger of death.

Of course, this danger was only real if she returned to her territory in Fungal Wastes, while she was away from that place she would be safe, nobody could touch her. But... He perceived that she wanted to go home at some point, he had already learned that Orchid had not really been abandoned by her family, she had left her land to become strong and hunt a powerful prey, with which she would demonstrate to everyone that she was worthy to remain in her post as Lord. If she became Lord again, she could not be with him, but if she stayed with him, she could never return home or see her family.

All these thoughts made his head jumbled. What was better? Was there any solution so that everyone could stay together as a united family? Why did mantises have to be so stubborn?At last he shook his head and stood up. As much as it hurt, it was not in his hands to do anything, in fact this was a decision that Orchid had to make, he could only resign himself and support her in whatever he could, he would not have the heart to separate her from her people and force her to stay with him

He left the house of the Gray Mourner, taking the journal with him, perhaps Ogrim would be interested in having a memory of his friend, even if it was a somewhat sad memory. He went through the underpass without complications, over the years he had enlarged the tunnel a little and after the departure of the goddess, the dangerous vermin had almost disappeared.

When he returned to the cemetery, he looked for Orchid everywhere and found her sitting against a tombstone with her knees drawn up and a sad look, his heart broke when he saw her like this. He sighed with regret, there was not much he could really do for her, but at least he would try to cheer her up, although that was not going to be so easy, as soon as the mantis noticed his presence she immediately stood up and looked at him in a bad mood. As always she couldn't be honest with her feelings, but despite her feigned anger, Hollow was able to notice a hint of sadness in her gaze.

"Oh! You finally appear. Can I know where you were? The guardian of the place has already returned and you were not to receive them, you don't know how uncomfortable it was to be with them, you should have more consideration. How could you get away and leave the place unprotected? Did you expect me to stay doing your work? Irresponsible...."

Hollow looked at her with exhaustion, this was already beginning to look like one of Hornet's sermons. In response he took his board and wrote on it.

"Sorry, I had to go do some urgent things, it won't happen again"

Orchid did not want to say anything, she knew what he had been doing, he went to cry for that female that he loved so much. How disappointing, she thought he was a strong warrior who did not allow himself to be carried away by those silly sentimentalities, that is why love was something bad, it distracted people from their goals, made them weak and caused them the horrendous pain that she was suffering now. She knew that she and Hollow would never be anything, their relationship was forbidden and he was free to mate with whoever he wanted, but her logic was not able to convince her heart.

Alarmed, Hollow saw the mantis' face turn somber, he was about to write something on his board to try to cheer her up when a cold touch on his back made him jump from fright. His reaction was so sudden that even Orchid stared at him, but what had happened was that Alone had put one of their tentacles on him and now they was staring blankly at him.

"(Don't scare me like that)" He looked at Alone's mask and noticed that it was no longer broken, there were only a few cracks left as a mark of what had happened. "(I see that your mask is fine, although... Have you not considered the idea of changing it? It is already very cracked)".

The vessel shook their head, then looked at Hollow and Orchid noticing the sad atmosphere between them, this made them feel confused. What happened? Was it the fault of the white thief?

"(you saw the white thief)".

"(Eh?... About the white thief. Did you mean a small white moth?)" A nod was the answer.

Hollow felt concerned, the nature of the insect had not been very clear to him, in itself his unpleasant resemblance to The Radiance bothered him a lot, but he had decided not to get carried away by it and give him the benefit of the doubt. However, if he remembered correctly, this creature was the one that had hurt his sibling. Why had he attacked them? Alone was peaceful. Maybe this insect was someone dangerous? If so, that only increased his worries, perhaps Scarlet would be in danger by his side.

"(Did the white thief attack you?)" Alone nodded. "(How he did?)"

The shadeling thought for a moment before answering.

"(I was walking through the cemetery and saw the white being eating flowers. He reminded me of The Radiance and I went to hit him. He bit me)"

"(He bit you... And what else did he do to you?)"

"(He spoke to me... A lot... About the legacy of the moths and his mission...)"

"(But that couldn't have hurt your mask)"

"(An aspid attacked him, I hurt myself by saving him from being eaten)"

Hollow looked at them with an incredulous expression, he had worried about nothing, at least in the real world that furball was weak and helpless, if an aspid could eat him, he was not a big deal, despite how powerful he looked in the dreamrealm. Snack was still a mystery, but he could be sure that Scarlet would be safe, she was a bat after all, that little creature would be no match for her.

"(Be more careful next time Alone)"

The vesel just nodded. He stared at Orchid and Hollow for a moment, unable to avoid feeling somewhat worried and stressed. It seemed one of those problems that went beyond their understanding and involved feelings. Despite all the books they had read, even the romantic ones, the feelings were strange to them. But still being useless on the subject, somehow they wanted to support their brother, so they approached him and took him by the hands, giving him a deep and somewhat hostile look at Orchid.

As always, Alone's lack of expressiveness made understanding them challenging. The guardian in their simplicity, wanted to tell him to stay away from the mantis to make him feel better, but by not saying a word and expressing himself so unclear, Hollow ended up confused. He tried to connect their gestures in some coherent way, although it was complicated. They took him by the hands and looked at Orchid... Or maybe they didn't look at Orchid? Maybe they looked at something that was in her direction, because otherwise he couldn't see the point of anything.

He looked towards the mantis and beyond, then he noticed the door that led to the East exit of the cemetery, then an idea came to his mind and he believed he understood the message of the guardian. They had suggested that he take Orchid to the Blue Lake, which was a great idea, that place was said to have the power to calm the spirit and clear the mind.

He gave a smile and a gesture of thanks to his sibling and went towards Orchid, took her by the claw and took her running towards the exit.

Alone stared at him and cocked their head in confusion. Would he have understood their message? Surely, Hollow was very smart, although it seemed strange that he should take her to the Blue Lake. Did he plan to drown her to get rid of her? That was not their intention! A certain discomfort in their chest attacked them and they looked with anguish at their assistants who only returned an empty look. Now they was feeling a little upset and didn't know why.

Meanwhile, Hollow was dragging Orchid through tunnels, taking her somewhere that only he knew. The mantis started to get scared by how fast they went, that prevented her from drawing a mental map of the place to be able to return, now she was at the mercy of the knight's will, if she get lost she would be in trouble, but she could not help but feel a certain air of fun and adventure regarding the situation.

Finally, after walking for a while, the knight began to stop his passage, Orchid was a little nervous and wanted to ask where they had gone when she realized the huge lake in front of her.

She was speechless when noticing the beauty of the place, she had never seen such a lake, she did not know that it was possible to house such a quantity of water together underground, it was frankly impressive, transparent and as calm as a cup of milk. There were numerous rock formations in its surroundings from which hung strips of moss that seemed to glow with the light emitted by the water, because in the bottom bioluminescent plants grew that gave the place a mysterious blue glow. Slowly she approached the shore and observed the water, it was so clear and transparent that the stones at the bottom shone like jewels, with that characteristic shine that gave the place its name.

For several minutes she was in a trance observing the waters, leaving her mind blank to be swept away by the soft waves of the liquid. She finally decided to take a seat and observe her surroundings, for some reason she felt calm. Suddenly her problems no longer seemed so important, being strong and loving someone who was not due did not seem so serious, now she just wanted to watch the waters and rest.

She remained absorbed in the water for several minutes until Hollow's presence at her side brought her back to reality, the vessel had sat next to her and was also looking at the lake.

"Life is complicated, don't you think?" The mantis suddenly said.

Hollow looked at her and just nodded.

"But I suppose we can sometimes enjoy quiet moments like this... Too bad they don't last forever... But maybe that's what makes us appreciate them more."

Hollow nodded again somewhat ruefully.

"I don't know what will happen tomorrow... I don't know how much pain there is but... I don't want it to make this moment less happy. I'm glad I got to know you better, knowing that you're more than just a ruthless warrior, really... Thank you".

Hollow looked down, it seemed almost a farewell, apparently in the calm of the clear waters Orchid had found her answer, she was decided to return to the tribe and he... He had also found his answer, he would not accept it so easily. She had said she loved him, it was reason enough for him to stay together. He would try to convince her somehow, if she stayed with him she could have everything she needed, nobody would kill her, nobody would force her to be a machine without feelings, she would receive all the hugs she wanted, she would sleep in silk sheets, she could fight against castle knights and train rookies. He had confidence in convincing her, he had a lot to offer.

But all of his plans to hold the mantis with him were cut short when she laid her head on him and closed her eyes. There was no longer a distance between them, they were both sitting together enjoying the view of the lake, sharing one moment of peace and the other's warmth. Finally Orchid had given up and she no longer cared about keeping her distance from him. What did the heat matter? What did difference of species matter? What did it matter that she was a Lord? He loved someone else, it didn't matter. So while she could, she would take him for herself. Now that they were alone, she would doze on him and no one would stop her.

Only the mantis's breath was heard and the soft sound of the water hitting the rocks, nothing could disturb the mantis' rest, she wanted to feel her knight next to her, his presence, his body, the pressure of his being on her side, and that could have continued for much longer if another strange weight on her other side hadn't surprised her.

Startled, Orchid opened her eyes and looked to the right where she found a vessel dressed in green leaning against her, looking at her with a mischievous expression.

What followed was a violent scene where Orchid stood up and kicked the shadeling who was expelled into the lake where he sank when he fell, although the splash on the water soon indicated that he was fine, but that was not what the mantis wanted. For as soon as she saw him emerge, she ran to her spear that had been stuck there and unearthed it ready to go and kill the creature.

Hollow panicked at the fury of the mantis and leapt at her, knocking her to the ground.

"Let me go! I'm going to kill him!"

Hollow ignored her and held her tighter, holding her against the floor. Orchid at first was struggling with all her might trying to break free, but at some point that started to feel more like a pleasant game, for some reason she wanted to be tied up.

Meanwhile, the green-hooded vessel who was named Green, came out of the water a little annoyed and headed toward the two struggling bugs, crossed his arms and looked at them sternly. Orchid noticed his presence and was immediately embarrassed to realize the situation and all the crazy ideas that crossed her mind.

"This is not what you think!" Green cocked his head wondering what she meant. He looked at Hollow for an answer, but he seemed just as confused. He ended up shaking his head and finally beginning to speak in his own particular language of the shadelings.

"(At last I find you! You don't know everything I have gone looking for you! First Big sent me to Crystal Peak, and when I arrive, they tell me that you went to Resting Grounds. I rushed to look for you and they tell me that you are in the Blue Lake. Stay in one place! And when I catch you I just want to rest a little next to you. And what won? A kick)"

"(Sorry" Hollow apologized somewhat sorry "(I think Orchid was a little scared... Ah!)

As Hollow gestured to communicate, she released Orchid and she pushed him slightly so that she could stand up and acquire a more dignified posture, although she was still blushing.

"Ahem... I would appreciate it if you didn't mention what you saw please."

Green looked at her with some annoyance.

"(And what is wrong with her?)" He asked his brother.

"(No idea, but let her be. Now, you were telling me you were looking for us, what happened?)"

"(Ah yes, Big needs you urgently in the castle)"

..................................

Hollow and Orchid rushed through the castle corridors, dodging the safety saws as they made their way to meet the king.

The mantis, not understanding the language of the shadelings, had not managed to find out what was happening, she could only follow Hollow when she saw him run back to the palace, and now she kept doing it while they went to meet Big. She hoped to find out what happened when they were in front of the king, at least he spoke an understandable language.

Finally they arrived in front of the monarch's office and Hollow without even bothering to knock opened the door and entered.

Big was sitting reviewing budgets for some big projects, and he didn't like Hollow coming in so suddenly, but he was in too good a mood to be mad.

".....!"

"Yes Hollow, they are already born."

"...............!"

Hollow was about to run out of the office when Big grabbed him by the cloak and stopped him.

"Wait a moment, you don't go anywhere".

".........!" Hollow waved his arms altered.

"What's happening here? Who was born?" Orchid spoke between gasps after the race chasing the knight.

"The Hornet's children, our nephews broke the egg the day before yesterday."

Orchid's eyes widened in surprise, she couldn't believe it. Had the spider queen had babies? Were she expecting children? No one had mentioned that, although it was normal, sometimes rulers kept their offspring a secret to keep them safe until the time was right.

It was then that she began to draw some accounts, considering the incubation time of the spiders and squaring dates, Hornet must have laid her eggs more or less when they had their meeting in the mantis Lord room, which meant that she was in no condition fighting at that time and that's why she had such a pathetic performance.

Therefore, Hornet was much stronger than she thought and Sharpy was right, now she really wanted to fight the Spider Queen again.

"................!"

"Yes Hollow, I know you want to go see her now, but this is not the time, you will meet your nephews later."

"...........?" He crossed his arms and looked at his brother in annoyance.

"At the party we will dedicate to them."

Hollow's eyes flashed with illusion.

"Yes, as King of Hallownest Heart I will organize a party to receive my nephews and also Hornet will take the opportunity to officially introduce the heir to Deepnest."

Hollow was jumping in his place very excited by this, his joy was so much that even Orchid felt infected.

"Well, then you will have a party in honor of the little ones. Where will you make the fire?"

"Fire?" Big looked confused.

"Yes, the bonfire of the party. You know, everyone will dance around the bonfire to the rhythm of the drum, and each bug will paint their body with colored inks, and then there will be a ritual combat."

Orchid was thinking of a traditional tribe festival, but the castle's refined and elegant celebrations were very different. Hollow and Big looked at each other somewhat concerned, Orchid was going to need quite a bit of preparation before attending an official castle party.

"Well Orchid, I think you will need to take some practical lessons..."

"Lessons? Of what?"

"Dress code, manners, dance and we will have to give you dress for the party. Sorry my dear but we are not used to painting our skin at celebrations".

"Manners? Dance? But..." The mantis was too surprised and somewhat confused.

"And I think we better start from now if we want you to be ready for the party, Hollow. Could you take her with Daisy?"

"Hey but..."

Orchid had no time to complain, the knight grabbed her and dragged her out of the office despite her protests and complaints. The king only saw her walk away with a mischievous smile.

"I think this will be fun," he said to himself.


	24. Party Preparations

A series of tumultuous thoughts surrounded Hornet's mind as she made her way to her room. She had recently gone to visit the prisoner accused of attacking her eggs to find out his condition. His recovery was going very well, at least his legs, if things continued like this, he could soon carry out a written interrogation. Even so, she wanted to have the sting dreamnail in case the individual involved them in some lie, however, the enthusiasm on the part of the prisoner to give a statement had her somewhat thoughtful.

Now she was trying to put her ideas in order to make the fairest decision possible, but that was somewhat complicated if she had Ania chattering around herself.

"Seriously my queen, you shouldn't be so considerate of that monster, you should kill him once and forget about him. He already tried to destroy your eggs! YOUR EGGS! The queen's precious offspring, that's an unforgivable crime".

"Ania, I'm still interested in what he has to say, so I'm not going to kill him until he's able to communicate. His mouth is unable to pronounce a word, but his legs are close to healing. In a little while he will be able to write again and then he will tell us everything he knows. Until then I will keep my verdict".

"You're being too soft, not punishing a culprit could be considered a sign of weakness."

"It is a sign of justice, even the preys themselves have the right to defend themselves and run for their lives. But I assure you that as soon as all this is clear, I will kill him myself, do not worry about that Ania".

"But my queen..."

"It's enough! I don't want to discuss the matter with you anymore, do not take powers that do not correspond to you. I am the queen and I will decide the fate of the prisoner. Now I want to relax and go see my children please".

"Yes, my lady" Ania said sadly. "They are in your room with the consort".

"It's not necessary you take such a distant attitude." Hornet looked at her somewhat puzzled, but the spider just bowed politely and retired to do her work.

The queen sighed with exhaustion, she already had enough problems to also have to worry about the mood of her servant. Lately she was behaving strangely and really didn't understand her. Would the birth of her children have affected her in any way? She hoped it was something temporary and would soon be the same Ania she was used to. Until now she had always been a perfect servant, the only one she had had since becoming queen, always ready to serve her, skilled in all kinds of activities, the one that supported her in everything and helped her in any way she could.

But she would leave that matter for later, now she only wanted to see her children, so she opened the door of her room where she found a scene that softened her heart.

Inside the room Quirrel was on the bed playing with his daughters. The girls ran over the blanket escaping from their father who was trying to catch them, obviously the pillbug moved awkwardly on purpose not to capture them and make the game last as long as possible.

"Well, it looks like you're having fun," the queen said with a smile.

"Hornet, you're back."

"Yi!" The girls screeched, running to meet their mother, who bent down to receive them in her arms.

"My little princess, how are you? Did you have fun playing with dad?"

"Yi yi!" Hornet kissed her forehead in greeting and glanced at the tiny pillbug.

"Oh daughter, I finally see you awake. How was the nap?"

In response, the girl settled into her mother's arms, closed her eyes, and began to doze off.

"Did you fall asleep again?"

"I think never are enough naps," Quirrel said, amused.

"Yes, I see." She sat on the bed and placed the princess next to her, although she kept the pill bug in her arms. "And Chester?"

"Up, where you left off."

They both looked up at the ceiling and saw the little boy tied in a silk cocoon hanging from the ceiling. Now that his mother had arrived he began to shake and scream trying to get attention. In response, Hornet with her free hand took out her needle and threw it against the cocoon cutting the thread that held it attached to the ceiling, it fell on the bed without any harm to its occupant, in fact it could be said that the experience even turned out to be fun. After that, Hornet proceeded to free him.

"I hope that with your punishment you learn not to run out of the house without an adult, you could fall into the lake," after that she kissed him on the forehead, although the rebellious boy did not seem very happy with the pampering of his mother.

When Hornet was done with him, Chester lay for a moment looking at the ceiling, but he didn't last long because the spider princess began to touch his belly, which tickled him. The little one tried to push her away but she seemed very determined to play with him, until he finally gave in and they started chasing each other on the bed.

"It seems that they have a lot of energy. Don't you want to join them?" Hornet spoke to the girl in her arms, she just growled softly and continued to rest in her mother's arms. "I suppose not".

"Don't worry, Hornet, some children are calmer than others."

"I know, I'm only concerned if she won't be too quiet."

"The midwife said she was fine, but if you are too distressed, we can go see her later."

"Sure, I'll schedule my time to pay her a visit. Changing the subject. Anything new while I was gone?"

"A couple of letters arrived, when you see the envelopes you will surely know from who they are".

Quirrel got up and picked up a pair of envelopes that he had on the nightstand, both of which were quite unique in their own way. The first was an extremely elegant envelope, it looked like it was made of silver, both in color and brilliance, it was written in neat and elegant handwriting and it had the Hallownest royal seal. The second one was diametrically different, it was green with fruit drawings, it was written in a less elegant but equally beautiful letter and it was sealed with a heart seal.

"Duplicate correspondence from Big, an official letter and a personal letter, this is quite interesting."

Hornet and Big were very careful about the etiquette and formalities that their rulers' status demanded, and this forced them to deal with their royal titles, make expensive gifts on special occasions and send correspondence written in formal language and in special envelopes destined for this purpose. But neither did they neglect their warm sibling relationship, that's why when there were no servants or people outside the family they used their names instead their titles, apart from the expensive and ostentatious gift, they always sent another gift more normal, thought according to the personal tastes of each one and attached to the formal letter, there was usually another, more humble and friendly letter.

Hornet admired the green envelope with fruits. At the last party she had given Big a package of envelopes with colorful designs, a note books with stamped paper and seals of flowers and hearts. She knew that he liked that colorful office supplies that It hadn't cost her more than 15 geos at the City of Tears store, but she had bought it thinking of him and that's why Big appreciated it so much. In fact every time he had a personal letter to send to his relatives, he used those envelopes and seals.

"Umm... which one first? I think I'll start with the formal letter".

"Well, what does it say?"

_Queen Hornet, Ruler of the vast grounds of Deepnest._

_Distinguished lady:_

_Along with greeting you, I offer my congratulations on the newborn descendants and send you my best wishes for health and prosperity._

_As a sign of friendship and union between our kingdoms, you are cordially invited to a party at the White Palace to welcome the offspring and meet the heir to Deepnest. Of course the presence of your consort will be well received._

_This will take place on the third day of the coming week._

_Without another subject and hoping your safety, I say goodbye._

_Big, King of Heart of Hallownest._

"A party at the palace, we haven't been to one in a long time," Quirrel said cheerfully.

"Yes..." Hornet instead seemed discouraged.

"What happens? Ah, you don't like parties, but there will be good food".

"It's not that... We're going to take the children, and that place is full of saws..."

"Right... I guess we can ask to disable them during the party, Big would not like his nephews to get hurt."

"I suppose..."

"Why don't you read the second letter?"

"Oh sure".

_Dear hornet:_

_I heard that your children were born. I'm dying to meet them! Could I play with them? They are very small? I love children!_

_When Hollow found out they born, he wanted to run to see you but I stopped him, I had to take him for a walk on the path of pain to calm him down. Ogrim said that saws could be dangerous for children so I will leave them off when you come to the castle. I only hope that this does not make strange people sneak into the party, because of course I have organized a party for you, in the other letter is the date._

_By the way, after the party you can stay to sleep, I have already prepared a room for you, please tell me that you will stay, so there will be more time to play with the children._

_To all this, Do you remember the mantis that we were taking care of the other day? We're taking her to the party, too, except we're a little concerned with her behavioral manners. Can you believe she suggested setting up a fire in the ballroom? She had even started preparing the place herself, and the other day began to paint Hollow's face, I'm glad she is more docile and feels comfortable with us, but there are certain things that we cannot allow her._

_Considering that mantises are your neighbors, do you have any recommendations? It would be of great help to us. Without further ado, I hope you are all well, give my regards to Quirrel, I love you very much._

_Big._

"Poor mantis." Hornet couldn't help but laugh at what she had read about her. "At least now it's easier to deal with her".

"And do you have any advice for them?" Asked Quirrel, who had already finished reading the letter.

"It's just a matter of educating her, it's not that difficult, I think I'll write you a letter too".

"Shall we sleep over there?"

"Well..." She sighed regretfully. Yes, we will. There is nothing wrong with that anyway and it is better if the children have a good relationship with their uncle. In case of an emergency, he would be their main source of help".

"Wonderful, I can pay a visit to the castle collection."

"You and your books..."

Quirrel just gave her a cheery smile and kissed his wife.

.................................................. ...................

"I do not want!" The mantis shouted, trying to get out of the hands of the females that dressed her.

"But you look beautiful..."

"I look ridiculous! I don't want to use these rags!"

"Rags!"

They all stared at her in horror and then glanced at the vessel that guarded the entire process.

He was not a very tall individual, he had two horns curved backwards, similar to Shadow's but more attached to his head, his body was more robust than that of an average vessel, showing a wide and prominent chest that stood out in his closed cape under which for some reason a tail loomed. The name of this individual was Demetrius and the tail was his own choice, that was the shape he had chosen as a shadow, although this was something that they could not explain to Orchid, who on her own, concluded that it was a variant of the shadeling species, another race so to speak.

Demetrius was in charge of the wardrobe. He loved fabrics and fashion, he had a close relationship with the weavers who provided him with material for his sophisticated clothing designs, he was famous for his good taste and clothing, many noblemen commissioned him costumes for his parties and he was very proud of his work. Because of that, the fact that a wild mantis called his fancy design "rags" had offended him greatly.

".................!"

Demetrius began to "scream" furiously at the mantis, of course she didn't understand anything he wanted to say, but his body language more or less made her realize that he was angry. The maids seemed somewhat scared although Orchid did not seem to mind, she just wanted to take those clothes off her, she felt uncomfortable, like she was wearing a ridiculous costume.

A light blue cloak with details and a fuchsia ribbon had been placed around her neck, and they had replaced Hornet's fabric with one that matched the mantle, in addition to complementing it with a wide fuchsia belt to keep the fabric in place. Everyone said that she looked beautiful but she did not believe it, surely they were making fun of her.

At that moment Big opened the door and entered the room where he saw the frightened maids and furious Demetrius shouting things not suitable for Christian ears.

"Demetrius, that language."

The aforementioned was startled to hear the monarch's voice and turned apologetically nervously.

"What made you so mad?" He looked up to find Orchid who was red-faced trying to cover herself with a vase. "Orchid you are beautiful! Although I feel that something is missing from this..."

Demetrius looked at him somewhat surprised, then directed his gaze towards the mantis analyzing his creation. After meditating for a moment he agreed with the king and ran to the insect, took a flower from the vase she was holding, took a light blue ribbon from his sewing box and improvised an ornament with the two elements, then he climbed on a chair to reach the mantis and placed the ornament on one of her antennas.

"Perfect! Big said cheerfully. Now you do seem like a lady of high society".

He walked towards the mantis and stared into her eyes, he reached out and tenderly brushed her face causing her to shudder. The servants who watched the scene discreetly began to leave the room, apparently a romantic scene was coming and they did not want to disturb the king.

Demetrius looked at them with a questioning face without moving from the place, he did not understand why everyone was leaving, they still had not finished fixing the suit, however no one deigned to explain anything, they took him by the hand and led him out of the room.

Orchid and Big were left alone in the room, with no company other than the furniture and the various models of party dresses they had tried on him. The monarch seemed very comfortable, although for the poor mantis it was just the opposite, she was extremely nervous. The sensations caused by the king contrasted greatly with those of her beloved knight, he possessed a crushing presence that somehow made her obey this king, but at the same time he had a sweet air that made her feel safe and at ease. With Big everything was calm and peace, something she was not used to, oddly enough.

The king only looked her up and down and she felt more and more upset, so she decided to break the silence, in the most peaceful way possible. Orchid would be able to attack anyone, but she would never dare raise a claw against Big, such was the power of the king's brand that Hollow had given his brother.

"Ma-ma-majesty, could you stop looking at me like that? It makes me nervous..."

"Eh? Oh sorry, you look so beautiful that it's hard to take my eyes off you".

This was undoubtedly a compliment, Orchid had never been complimented in her life and she did not know how to react. In the tribe formal couple relationships were not used, but it was not uncommon for males and females to interact intimately outside the reproductive season, that was not prohibited, although it was considered somewhat dangerous due to the risk of falling in love. Orchid fearing that It happened to her, she never had relations with any male, not even a simple flirtation, partly because of the distance that she put herself with others, and partly because they were afraid of her.

For all this, she did not know how to react when someone behaved gallantly towards her, she did not even believe that they were being serious, after all, in the tribe she was considered one of the strongest mantises, but not the most attractive, in fact Lily was more popular than her.

"I appreciate your words, but I'd be happier if you were honest. I am not a particularly beautiful mantis, nor am I a high society lady, I am a warrior, mine is battle and power, I am aware of what I am and I accept it, I have no problem with it. This scar-ridden shell is not that of a lady, it is that of a killing machine".

Perhaps the last words she spoke made her somewhat bitter, she really didn't want her only value to be to end the life of other bugs, she wanted to be more than that. Hollow had taught her that life was more than just fighting, but she didn't think there was anything really good about her, she wasn't protective, she wasn't sweet, she wasn't friendly, she was selfish, weak and of course she wasn't pretty.

"Well... Your scars have decreased quite a bit since you used the ointment Hollow bought for you."

Orchid blushed at the thought of the cream, lately she applied it herself, but still remembered the "help" she received the first few times.

"Majesty! A few less scars will not improve my appearance, I am not pretty, a warrior cannot be pretty."

"Why not? I am also a formidable fighter and I am very handsome."

The mantis couldn't help but laugh at his comment. He really had a lot of self-confidence, although quite rightly, Big was very cute, maybe he had not that sensual appeal of Hollow, but he was beautiful in his own way, in a more adorable and sweet way. He was the kind of bug that you just would like to hang out, walk, chat, or do any other type of activity, including fighting.

"Everyone says that you are a great fighter, but I still haven't been able to verify it with my own eyes."

"Oh? Truly? Well, if you improve your etiquette and dance classes, you and I could have a duel."

"Really!?" Orchid's tail began to flutter gently from top to bottom, which did not go unnoticed by Big, after Hollow told him that detail.

"Of course, but as I said, only if you improve in etiquette and dance." Orchid snorted.

"Etiquette classes are so stupid, eating shouldn't be that cumbersome, and all those formalities with the nobles at the party... A party is supposed to be fun! Anyway, at least they are not difficult things to learn, the problem is dancing."

"Is it difficult for you to dance?"

"No, at least in theory it doesn't seem hard, but I haven't been able to practice."

"Why?"

"The teacher is afraid of me. He hardly comes close to me, in this dance is supposed we have to hold hands or something like that, and he is not even able to touch my claw. How do they expect me to learn?"

"Oh, what a problem."

Big looked at her, then looked down and thought for a moment, by the time he looked at the mantis again, a mischievous smile appeared on his face, he took Orchid by a claw and started to pull her out of the room.

"Ma-ma-Majesty! What do you do!"

"I'm taking you to the ballroom, I'll practice with you."

"What? But but..."

There was no word to change Big's mind, the mantis would have dance classes taught by the king himself. Both of them left the room distractedly, unaware of the presence of the servants who had hidden behind a curtain so that they would not be caught spying behind the door.

Along the way Big managed to get a pianist to play for them while they practiced their dance and that is how Orchid received her personal classes taught by the king of the castle himself, a strange honor that in the eyes of others, was another proof of the closeness between those two.

"Okay Orchid. Place your hand on my shoulder like this, I will stand here and place my hand on your waist, get closer, that's it".

"Eh... Is this necessary?" The mantis said with a red face. "We are very close."

"That's how you dance at this type of party, it's not that strange, and the proximity allows you to talk while you dance".

"Well... Seen from that point of view it seems practical, but if you start dancing you can't concentrate on speaking, can you?"

"This dance is so simple and calm that once you learn it, you don't need to think much about it, let's start. This dance is called a waltz, and it is characterized by having a three-beat rhythm, you take three steps and take a short pause, and then three more steps and so on. It is simple, you just have to try not to step on your partner and not collide with any of the other dancing couples. But by tradition it is the male who guides the dance, so at least you can not worry about the issue of colliding with someone".

"I get it".

"Well, music master!"

The musician, who was none other than Soul, who was sitting in front of a beautiful grand piano and at Big's signal, he placed his fingers on the keys and began to play a happy waltz.

Big took the first step so suddenly that Orchid almost fell for not following him, but after the first stumble she began to strain to follow. At first Big was counting the steps to help her keep up. "One, two, three, one two three" sang the vessel, and after some moments of doubt and awkwardness, the mantis began to dance with him.

This dance was very different from any other she had performed, it had nothing to do with the rhythmic rounds around the bonfire in the tribe, nor with the dizzying paraphernalia she had ridden with Hollow in Crystal Peak. It was a refined dance, calm and even monotonous. As Big used to say, once you got used to it you didn't even have to pay attention to each step and you could be distracted by other things. At a royal party you would have paid attention to other couples dancing, or chatted with your partner, but since it was a just practice, she just watched Big.

He was a very beautiful bug indeed, the regal horns that crowned his head were imposing, his figure was strong and well formed and his size impressive, but above all, that beautiful and sweet gaze full of calm was what most called her Attention, there was so much kindness in those eyes that she felt calm just seeing them, that added to the pleasant piano music turned that moment into a dream. She did not even notice when the music ended and her steps stopped slowly.

Both dancers looked at each other for a moment in silence and then ...

"You're so cute!" Big said before grabbing Orchid and hugging her so badly he even lifted her off the ground.

At that time Orchid forgot that she was in front of the king of the country who could crush her tribe and left all her manners aside.

"Let me go, you damn animal! Put me down at once! Are you listening to me?!"

But Big ignored her, he just waved Orchid from side to side as if she were a stuffed animal. And at that moment Hollow who was looking for the mantis entered the room.

He found Big hugging Orchid as if she were his toy and Soul looking at them with an amused expression. Immediately a pang of jealousy nailed his heart, although he was not able to recognize that feeling as such, he only knew that it made him a little angry to see Big hug the mantis in that way, so he approached and very politely called their attention hitting his nail against the ground.

Immediately Big and Orchid looked at him, she with some fear (for reasons she did not want to recognize) and he with some surprise. He noticed how upset his brother looked, then he looked at the mantis and understood everything. Big released Orchid and placed her in front of Hollow.

"Sorry, she looked so cute I had to hug her, now you can hug her."

"What?!" The mantis screamed, turning redder and redder.

In response Big gave her a gentlemanly kiss on the forehead.

"I have to go, I have things to do, Hollow also knows how to dance waltz, he can finish teaching you." He touched his brother kindly on the shoulder as a farewell and started to walk away. "Have fun, I hope you make her ready for the party, Hollow".

As always, Big handled situations with such natural ease that it was impossible to get mad at him. Hollow calmed down with the idea that it was only a hug because Orchid looked very pretty, in fact he thought the same now that he looked good. He also wanted a hug, or maybe something else. Anyway he had more rights, she had told him that she loved him, she was his girlfriend (Maybe not yet but he would fix that theme at the party).

He looked at Orchid for a moment, and then kissed her.

For the next hour he ran around the castle being chased by an angry mantis who wanted to claw at him and he didn't know why.

Of course Orchid was not going to recognize how much she had liked the kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Demetrius is a vessel created by Mika, a friend who participates in a Hollow Knight rolplay.  
The next chapter will took some time, patience please.


	25. The Party

"Hollow... Please... Tell me this is a joke, you can't be serious," Ogrim said with noticeable concern in his voice.

The knight looked at him without showing signs of understanding the problem, in his eyes Ogrim was exaggerating, so he ignored his question and turned to the mirror to finish arranging his gala cloak, an elegant black model with a silver bib, another of the exclusive designs of Demetrio.

"You can't do that!" The beetle spoke once more, standing between the knight and his reflection. "You and Orchid can't be dating!"

"....." Hollow glared at him, no one was going to forbid him to make Orchid his girlfriend if they both wished, which he made more than clear with his gestures.

"And can you tell me when that happened?"

"........"

"She confessed in the cemetery while she was drugged ... How romantic."

"........" Hollow crossed his arms proudly.

"Hollow... You can't take seriously the words of someone who is druged. It's common sense! She probably doesn't even remember that happened." He clutched his head in exasperation. "Look, I doubt that girl is interested in being your girlfriend, you know how racist and xenophobic her species is. And even if she were able to put all that aside and love you, how do you intend to maintain a relationship with her being what you are?"

"...............!" Hollow was furious at this comment.

"I know your condition has never prevented you from living a normal life and all that, but there are certain things you can't do besides not speaking at an audible volume, I guess you've taken into account the fact that you will never be able to bear children."

"............"

"Just because you don't like children doesn't mean she doesn't. What if she wants to be a mother one day? Those kinds of things must be decided by both."

".........." He seemed a bit embarrassed at these arguments.

"And even if you both decide you don't want children, when she wants to touch your body, she will discover that something is not right there."

Hollow tilted his head confused, not quite understanding what he meant by touching him, the compacted shadows could imitate the shell of an insect quite well, for something in all these years no one outside the family had discovered the secret of the shadelings.

"Let's see..." The beetle seemed somewhat uncomfortable having to explain those things to him. "Sex is not just for bringing children into the world. Did you know?"

The conversation was going to take a very interesting turn, but this was not the time, as they were about to start a very important party. Just at that moment the door to Hollow's room opened and Big came in exuding emotion from his eyes, almost looking like a child swinging from one foot to the other as his precious silver cape with floral patterns billowed behind him.

"Hornet is here! And she brought her kids!"

........................................................

The spider queen was in the hall being attended by the servants who, with all the cordiality in the world, offered her all kinds of refreshments and asked her until exhaustion if she needed anything, which instead of being something pleasant, only made her feel uncomfortable. She would never get used to the opulence with which Big liked to live, she preferred the simplest and closest things.

She took a look at her mate who was a little further back talking with a maid, his simple and friendly nature made it extremely easy for him to socialize, in fact he looked quite comfortable, sometimes she envied that quality of him

The maids looked at Hornet's hatchlings, which were safely sheltered in a basket beside her. The little ones seemed adorable to them and they were dying to get close to pamper them, but they had to hold back, because too much closeness would cause the mother's annoyance, one of them already had to endure the withering look of the spider queen for getting too close.

The little ones of course were oblivious to all this drama, they just looked around with excited eyes, everything was new, beautiful, bright and white. The floor was so shiny that they could see their reflection in it, the curtains were beautiful and soft, the decorations were full of details that imitated flowers and plants, and the people dressed in a funny way (In the eyes of the little ones). They were so excited about everything that they didn't know what to do.

Chester of course, being the most restless, wanted to be the first to explore this whole new world and had already put to work trying to escape from the nest, of course his mother who was attentive to his every move stopped him.

"No Chester, go in, I'm not going to let you get in trouble, maybe the castle's saws are off, but there are still a lot of dangerous things here."

With a gentle push she put the boy back in the basket, he was not very happy. And while Hornet was distracted taking care of retaining the little one, his spider sister took the opportunity to make an escape attempt, perhaps she was more calm and obedient than Chester, but the place was too beautiful to resist, fortunately dad came to the rescue to stop her.

"No princess, don't imitate your brother's bad habits." The pill bug made sure to accommodate her in the nest.

But the princess, despite her young age, was smart, and she already knew the weakness that her father had for her. She extended her arms towards him, implying that she wanted him to take her, he of course agreed delightedly. The girl, happy to be in the heights and to be able to see things around her a little better, gave a superior look to her brother who was still in the basket, provoking his anger. Chester was about to ask his mother to hold him too when an imposing presence appeared in the room. The king had arrived.

They all bowed to his presence, Hornet and Quirrel also bowed politely, but the children... They burst into tears.

Big was so tall and gave off so much power that it was obvious that tiny creatures like them would be overwhelmed, the king had the power to pop them with one finger and they were aware of that. Terrified Chester and the little pill bug unfolded the sheet they had in their basket and hid under it. The princess in Quirrel's arms clung to him and hid her head still shaking.

This situation left Big devastated, he had looked forward to meeting his nephew and nieces and it turned out that they were afraid of him. The monarch's look was so sad, there was no one in the place who had not been moved by his anguish. So not wanting to bother the children more, he lowered his head and stepped back, giving them space.

"Big... Don't worry, this will be temporary, as soon as they get used to you they will surely love you" Hornet tried to reassure him.

"Yeah, I guess." He sighed heavily and tried to maintain his composure to comply with protocol. "I welcome you to the palace my dear queen, I hope that your stay is to your liking and that you can enjoy the festivities."

"Your hospitality is greatly appreciated." Hornet also had to endure the urge to comfort and hug her brother.

"Well, now if you'll excuse me there are some matters that I must fix first, if you need something ask one of the servants, they will be happy to attend to you."

And at that moment Hollow and Ogrim arrived, who even without explaining anything, caught a certain tension in the environment, they looked at the king who seemed extremely sad and at Hornet who was somewhat anguished. It was then that Hollow noticed the small bundle nestled in Quirrel's arms and, moved by curiosity, leaned over to look at it.

"............?"

"Hollow, I don't think it's a good time for this, now the children are a little scared to be honest."

But to Quirrel's surprise, the little spider on his arms poked her face and fixed her eyes on her uncle, she stayed for several seconds watching him carefully, while everyone around held their breath expectant at what was going to happen. And when they least expected it , the girl extended her arms towards the knight demanding that he take her.

Hollow to tell the truth was very nervous, he was not very fond of children and this creature was so small that he was afraid of damaging her with a bad movement, he looked askance at his sister who nodded indicating him to go ahead and he after sighing and arming himself of courage, he took the little spider.

The girl seemed to calm down in her uncle's arms. Hollow had a protective nature, he would always be a guardian and apparently the children's instincts had revealed this to them, with him they would be safe from all danger, so the princess in his arms calmed down enough to look at the king with something more trustworthy. Even the little ones who were hidden under a sheet in their basket dared to poke their eyes out to know what was going on.

Big looked with genuine envy at his brother, the little girl seemed happy in his arms, while with him she only cried, he wanted so much to caress her and play with her, but he couldn't and this hurt too much. However to his surprise, Hollow began to walk towards him. The girl got nervous and clung to the knight while looking at the king, Big wanted to back away so as not to scare the spider any more, but before doing so, Hollow stopped her walk and extended a hand towards him without saying anything.

At first he felt confused and looked alternately at the limb that he offered him and then at Hollow. So, with some doubt he took his brother's hand and noticed how the princess was startled in the arms of his uncle, now it was she who was looking alternately to the king and the knight, until after several seconds she seemed to calm down again, somehow the Hollow's gesture was enough to determine that that mighty giant was not someone dangerous.

Big regained his good humor when it became clear that the girl would no longer cry with him, this time he was able to calmly approach her to look at her better, he even caressed her gently with one of his fingers. He was impressed with the smallness and fragility of the baby, she was so tiny that she could fit in one hand, she looked so delicate that the slightest blow would kill her. It was impressive to see how each part of her body perfectly imitated the body of an adult but in miniature, actually now that he got a better look at it, it was quite interesting.

His head was quite similar to that of Hornet, although with one more horn and an extra pair of eyes, but that was where her resemblance ended, because the rest of her was much more similar to that of a spider, in fact it reminded him quite of Herrah. No It occurred to him to think of a more perfect creature to rule over Deep Nest, in fact, even within the tenderness that this baby aroused, one could guess a certain proud and demanding attitude. Hopefully growing up she would not become too obnoxious to her siblings who were already lower in rank than her, he was confident that Hornet's education would be enough to raise a polite and agreeable princess.

"Well, I think that was enough," Hornet chimed in. She didn't like her children being pawed too much, even if they were members of her own family. "Don't you have to make some arrangements before the party?"

"Oh sure, it's true. Hollow, put her in the basket please."

As Hollow returned the spider to her siblings, Big, who had already gained some confidence in front of the little ones, took the time to examine them well.

Both brothers actually started inspecting the remaining hatchlings. Hollow could not suppress a smile when he saw how similar the pill bug was to Quirrel, even with her four eyes and four arms, it was evident who her father was, it was like having a tiny Quirrel in front, plus she seemed so calm and patient that caused instant sympathy.

But the one who really impressed them was Chester, they both gave Hornet questioning looks as they pointed at the little boy.

"Well, according to the Midwife, it is the Pale King's genes that manifested themselves very strongly on him, for something he is identical to his uncles, in fact I think he looks a lot like Hollow when he was a Child"

"(But I was never this small)."

"Yes you were, we are all born small at first, but some end up growing too big." She gave Big an accusing glance, though he didn't seem to notice this.

"Can they talk?"

"Not yet, but he has a voice to make sound and in every way he's a normal, healthy **boy**."

The fact that she highlighted the word "boy" was her way of secretly saying that he had a defined gender, the lack of sex of the shadelings was a hidden issue for the common people and having servants in the vicinity, it was not something of which she could speak openly at that time. Anyway Big seemed to understand the message, as he stood up with an expression of absolute joy.

"Surely you will be tired from the trip, perhaps it is best to settle in their rooms, so the children can relax before the party and the presentation ceremony. Margaret will guide you."

"We appreciate your attention." Hornet bowed his head respectfully and covered the little ones with the sheet of the basket to calm them.

"This way, your highness," the so-called Margaret, who was a beatle, got ready to guide the spider queen and her consort through the intricate corridors of the palace.

"My king, my king," a fly said suddenly, running down the hall. "Queen Clare and Queen Sade have already arrived."

"Oh, tell them I'm coming right away." He gave her sister one last look. "We'll see you later at the party."

"I'll wait for that moment."

And immediately afterwards the king turned his back to go to his guests, however when Hornet saw that precious silver cape waving in front of her, she noticed that something was hindering his movement, there was something hooked in the middle and it was none other than her son.

"Chester! Get down from there!"

Immediately the spider queen ran to Big and after asking permission and apology, she climbed on top of him to detach the little one who did not seem to want to let go. Everyone present had to suppress a laugh at the comic scene they were witnessing, in the end Hornet managed to capture the child and with her face red with shame she prepared to follow her husband who was carrying the basket at that moment.

Chester in his mother's arms leaned over her shoulder to watch his uncle get smaller as he walked away, then in a spontaneous gesture he waved his hand in farewell, which the monarch gladly reciprocated .

Big felt his heart swell with joy, his nephew and nieces were precious and in particular little Chester had put him in a very good mood. He was truly pleased that the Hornet's son was a shadeling, and that he was also a normal child. It often made him a little sad that his species was destined to disappear, since none of them had the ability to reproduce. Living on the surface and eating their food turned them into mortal beings, therefore, all those who left the abyss to live another life, would one day die, but Chester was the hope. If he reached adulthood and managed to have children, some of them could be shadelings, therefore the species would manage to prosper, in fact this whole thing had caused a very particular idea to be planted in his head, he hope that Hornet would not be angry about it.

................................................................

Finally Big meet with Queen Clare, her retinue of Mosskin and her inseparable personal guardian Dimityr. As soon as she saw him arrive, the warrior gave him the typical warning look that she used with everyone who approached her queen, before making the courteous bow that the situation merited.

Clare, the truth was not much to follow protocols, but she was forgiven for being a girl, in fact it was impressive that someone her age could rule, fortunately her superior intelligence and the fact that in her kingdom something rarely happened made it much easier. The young root ran to Big and gave him a warm hug that the vessel reciprocated with affection, and sneakily saw Dymitir who looked very upset. He chuckled internally at her grumpy demeanor, it was always fun to watch her get mad.

"Big, why are you so tall?" The little root complained releasing her brother from her embrace.

"When you are an adult you will be even taller than me, after all your mother was huge."

"And how long until that?"

"About 100 or 150 years maybe..."

"That's a lot of time!" The girl pouted in disgust, but then seemed to calm down and began to twist her vegetable fiber clothing as she swayed. "Thank you for inviting me to the party, there was not one for a long time, the last time the food was very good."

"I'm glad that dinner was to your liking." Clare was startled at the formality with which Big spoke, so she stood firm trying to take a dignified attitude, although she looked more tender than imposing. "However, I hope you remember that this party is not just for the enjoyment and fun of the attendees, the Queen of Deep Nest will formally introduce her heir."

"Yes, I know." The girl seemed very determined to show that she was up to the task. "Indeed the Green Lands kingdom has brought a fabulous present for the heir."

"Of course, of course." Big was having a hard time taking the little root seriously. "A pleasure to receive you in this celebration, I hope you enjoy your stay and welcome."

"Thank you." The girl looked at her guardian with a smile. "Come on Dymitir! To the party! I want to try..." Suddenly an expression of anguish appeared on the girl's face and after letting out a groan she looked at Big with longing eyes.

"Ah! Do you need it now?"

"Yes..." She said sadly.

"You know where the gardens are."

"Y-Yes. Dymitir..."

The vessel, knowing the problem that afflicted the little queen, with all alacrity went to her and took her by the hand to lead her to a suitable place for her to find relief. The mosskin who accompanied them, knowing the private nature of that event, went ahead to the party room where there were more and more guests.

Big watched the Green lands residents walk away and took a moment of tranquility to himself, he needed it before receiving his next illustrious visit, to tell the truth, Queen Sade was not his favorite person, but his status forced him to treat her cordially.

"Big darling, nice to see you, how long isn't it?"

And there was the monarch of the hive, with her flirtatious walk, her cheeky personality and her entourage of subjects behind her. He was not so happy to see her, but he knew how to hide it well, in fact he was an expert in hiding his feelings.

"Queen Sade, welcome to the White Palace." His impeccable manners as always impressed the bees, but not their leader.

"Big darling, with all the time we've known each other, you could treat me with more confidence, you know?" She ended with a wink that Big ignored completely.

"Rules and protocols are important, and this is not a private situation."

"Sure, I guess you're right, maybe later after the party we could talk more closely," she said, taking a step forward, closing the distance between them.

"I'm afraid I'll be a bit busy, the visit of my nephew and nieces will make my attention focus on them."

"Ah, a family man, that's lovely, I love devoted and loving males, but it would also be nice if you could spend some time on yourself."

"Oh trust me, I have more than enough time for myself."

Sade had already started her game of seduction, he knew her well and now it was his turn to be careful to reject her in an honorable and polite way. It was a challenge of strategy and lip, it was not at all unpleasant because he liked games of ingenuity, although now he was not in the mood, but with or without desire, he had never failed to ward off the bee.

"I would really be honored to share some of that time with you."

"But I don't want to bother you, besides, I know that by now you will be very busy. If I remember correctly, you have to choose a father for the next generation of the hive, right?"

"Yes, we must ensure the future, something that perhaps you should also consider, you will not live forever and you need an heir."

"And an heir is something a bee cannot bestow on me."

And indeed that was so, as queen bees only gave birth to pure bees, all infertile unless a princess was raised. Big had already gotten bored of the detours and gave a more direct answer, he knew that Sade was very determined to obtain his fatherhood, because being such a big and strong creature, theoretically he could give her children/subjects with good qualities, but of course something like that was beyond his means, so he must drive her away at all costs.

"Mphf, well, thanks for receiving me, I hope the party and the food are good." Sade's annoyance was noticeable. "And consider my words regarding an heir, that is a truth you cannot escape."

"Don't worry, I have everything under control."

Without saying more, the queen bee with her entourage moved away from the monarch, entering the corridors towards the main hall.

.................................................. ............

Orchid looked at herself in the mirror once more with some regret, although everyone told her that she looked very beautiful, it was difficult for her to accept this, she felt the party dress was a waste on her, it would fit better on any other creature, despite that it had been tailored for her.

She sighed resignedly preparing herself mentally to go to the celebration, the truth is now that she knew what the event consisted of, she was no longer as enthusiastic as before, she was ashamed of that intimate dance that practically forced her to hug her partner. The colors rose to her face as she imagined hugging Big, and she almost fainted at the same thought but with Hollow. It was repeated over and over again that it did not mean anything serious, in fact they told her that she would probably end up dancing with several strangers during the party if she felt like it, but she couldn't help it, everything that involved the knight turned her world upside down.

She left her room with the intention of going to the main hall when she noticed something strange, the plants that decorated the hall were growing, that was a normal fact, but now it was so fast that she could notice the changes with the naked eye.

Like any normal creature facing an inexplicable phenomenon, she was scared, but it was in the nature of the mantises to face their fears, although not knowing what to do really made her nervous, in fact she was not quite sure if that was something good or bad.

After thinking about it for a moment, she decided to go to the central garden of the palace, the place with the most agglomeration of plants, perhaps there she could find an answer to what was happening, and boy did she find it.

When she reached the huge urban garden that decorated the site, she entered the trees and plants, being careful not to touch any of them, they were all growing at a mad pace, even from the same land new life was sprouting with an unthinkable speed. Then she heard a groan, and when she turned her gaze towards the center of the garden, she found something very strange.

It was like a miniature tree, with a white trunk and branches, dressed in vegetal clothes, it had violet eyes and a pair of branches that resembled hands with which it held a shadeling who dressed similarly to her, although her suit looked somewhat less ostentatious. The vessel had some plant fibers decorating her head which were also growing, its reach extended through her horns as small flowers sprouted creating a kind of crown for her. The tree-like being seemed to be responsible for the entire display of plant life that flooded the palace, as it had buried its roots in the earth and was full of flowers around it.

This was a sight as rare as it was beautiful, that somehow Orchid was familiar, although after a search in her old memories she was able to connect it with the old White Lady. If her assumptions were correct, surely this being was also a root and a high being, being more specific, it must be Queen Clare, the young ruler of Green Lands.

Orchid stayed for a while watching the girl release all her power on the earth, granting it fertility. She had heard say the roots had the constant need to give life, this must be one of her reproductive starts and one of the main reasons because they were so appreciated.

Finally the young Clare finished alleviating her needs and with a sigh she withdrew her roots from the earth, she looked somewhat exhausted but happy, then she looked around proudly for what she had done. Orchid was also glad to have witnessed something so beautiful and unique, but now that she had finished, it seemed appropriate to withdraw to maintain her privacy, she was not sure if she had seen something she should not see, so she preferred to keep her presence hidden.

Unfortunately she was not careful enough and stepped on a branch that creaked softly, despite being a very faint sound, Dimityr perceived it and immediately without asking anything took out her spear and attacked the mantis. Orchid was able to avoid the attack without suffering any damage, something that could not be said about her clothes. She looked sadly as an ugly tear ruined her designer suit and angrily directed her claws towards the knight. She skillfully blocked his offensives using her spear and taking advantage of her strength she pushed her away, she was about to attack again when a root tangled in one of her legs and made her fall.

"Enough Dimityr!" Clare yelled indignantly. "Why do you always attack everyone who approaches without even asking anything?"

"..........!"

"She is a mantis, but we are not in Green Lands or Fungal Wastes, this is the palace and if they let her in I don't think she is dangerous."

"..................!"

"Well..." Clara flushed a little. "Spying is not correct, but it is not a crime so serious as to deserve death."

"Then I shouldn't have seen this," Orchid said a little sadly. "Sorry I didn't know, I just wanted to know why the plants were growing so fast, I didn't think it was wrong."

"Uh... It's not like it's a bad thing or anything, but I don't like being seen because I lose my composure a bit." Clare looked away trying to calm herself. "I apologize for the behavior of my guardian, sometimes she is a bit exaggerated when taking care of me."

"Okay, it's nothing serious, in other circumstances I would have loved to fight with her, but... With these clothes..." He looked sadly at the torn fabric on her chest.

"Oh no! Look what you did Dimityr!" The vessel looked away in annoyance at being scolded. "It's a very expensive suit, oh, I'm really sorry, it sure cost you a fortune and this happens just before the party."

"It's not like..."

"Let me help you."

Without Orchid being able to reply and despite the protests of the guardian, Clare took the claw of the mantis and closed her eyes. A small vine began to climb up the insect's arm to her terror, for a moment she thought it would imprison her in a vegetable cage or something, but the vine always kept its fine and delicate shape, spreading its branches up to the chest where it was the hole in the suit, then a bouquet of flowers sprouted from the plant hiding the imperfection completely. After that, the queen released the mantis, leaving her work perfectly arranged on the insect, it almost seemed that it was part of the costume.

"Okay, I can't repair the suit, but that will at least hide the problem until the end of the party."

"Uh... Thank you..."

"Of course, I know this will not be enough to pay for the damage done, so now I owe you a favor." Dimityr started to 'squeal' indignantly at this. "If you ever need something that is within my power, please let me know, I will grant it to you immediately."

"Uh... sure."

"Well! So now we're going to the party. "With a shake of her head, Clare made the root that held Dimityr trapped.

The vessel stood up in some annoyance and gave Orchid a withering look.

"Don't look at her like that, this is your fault Dimityr, in fact when we get home you'll be grounded."

"............!?

"I don't want replies."

Orchid sighed as she followed those two into the ballroom, what had just happened left her thinking. Perhaps finally her opportunity had come, if Clare owed her a favor, perhaps she could obtain permission to hunt in Green Lands, she still did not forget the reason why she had left her home, to hunt the most powerful prey in history, now it seemed that after so much time lost, her goal was just around the corner.

Suddenly she saw her beloved knight standing at the end of the hall waiting for her, then her heart raced as she felt herself faint with love. Permission to hunt could wait, now she had more important things to think about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not dead (No yet). It had been a long time, but I am here, thanks for the coments, you encourage me to continue with this.  
I'll upload the next chapter soon.

**Author's Note:**

> The destiny of this story is a mystery.


End file.
